'♦LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.? 

A f 

♦UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ] 



THE 



PRAYER OF FAITH 



BY 



CARRIE F. JUDD, 

Author of " Lilies from the Vale of Thought. v 



11 Is any sick among you ? let him call for the elders of the church ; and let 
them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord : And 
the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and 
if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him."— JAMES V : 14, 15. 




H. H. OTIS, 288 MAIN STREET. 
1880. 






Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1880, 

By CARRIE F. JUDD, 

In the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C. 



The Courier Company, 

Electrotypers, Printers and Binders, 

Buffalo, N. Y. 



5To 

THE SUFFERING ONES 

Who are Toiling on with scarce Strength to Lift their 
Burdens ; and to Those whose Work has Long been 
Laid Aside, who Lie on Beds of Sickness in 
Noiseless, Darkened Rooms; to the 
Loved Ones everywhere, who 
are Worn with Weari- 
ness and Pain, 

fi IBefctcate tfjts SLtttle Volume, 

With a Prayer that it May Bring to Each and All who 
Read it, the Faith and Hope which will Inspire 
Them to Seek for Health of Body, and 
Greater Strength of Soul, from 
Christ, the Great Physi- 
cian. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 



Page. 
Introductory, 9 

CHAPTER II. 
The Power of Jesus' Name, 22 

CHAPTER III. 
The Nature of Faith, 37 

CHAPTER IV. 

God's Blessed Will for His Children, . . 54 

CHAPTER V. 
Anointing and Consecration, 70 

CHAPTER VI. 
The Use of Medicine, 79 



VI CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER VII, 

Page. 

Believing God's Word, 93 

CHAPTER VIII. 
Glorifying God, . 105 

CHAPTER IX. 
Victory Through Christ, 112 

CHAPTER X. 
Prayer and Fasting, 126 

CHAPTER XI. 
Service for the Master, 143 

CHAPTER XII. 
The True Church Militant, . . . . . 160 



©lb Pragpr of Faill}* 



THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 



CHAPTER I. 



INTRODUCTORY. 



No. 260 Connecticut Street, 

Buffalo, N. Y., July ph, 1880. 

On the sixth of January, 1877, after a grad- 
ual decline in health, I was prostrated with an 
attack of fever, proceeding from my spine, the 
result, probably, of a severe fall on a stone 
sidewalk several months before. The fever was 
soon subdued, but my disease grew into settled 
spinal difficulty, and from the inflammation of 
the spinal nerves proceeded a most distressing 
hyper-acuteness, called hypersesthesia. This 
extended to all my large joints; and my hips, 
knees and ankles could not be touched even 
by myself, on account of their sensitiveness. 
The disease increased until the nerves in the 
joints were so unnaturally alive that it was as 
if they had been laid bare, and it seemed to 
me as though nothing less than spasms would 



IO THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

be the immediate result were they touched. 
The vibrating of these sensitive nerves, occa- 
sioned by the tiniest jar or noise in the room, 
was something indescribably dreadful. 

For all but the first two months of my ill- 
ness, extreme helplessness as well as suffering 
made my lot almost unendurable. For more 
than two years, turning over alone or moving 
myself a particle in bed was simply an im- 
possibility. Every move was made for me 
with the greatest care. I suffered intensely 
with my head ; the violent, tearing pain, the 
terrible sense of weight, and the extreme sen- 
sitiveness made a soft, small pillow feel like a 
block of stone, the pressure of which was 
crushing my brain to atoms. Much of the 
time we were obliged to exclude from the 
room all excepting those who had the care of 
me. 

For eleven months I could not sit up at all, 
but in the spring of 1878 improved slowly, 
and could be lifted into a chair for a little 
while each day. I was more comfortable 
until July, but I could not by my greatest 
exertions get able to help myself at all. The 



INTRODUCTORY. II 

only way in which I could be moved from 
the bed to the chair, was by being lifted un- 
der my arms, as I could endure no pressure 
on my spine. 

The very warm weather at that time, and 
my making attempts to help myself when in 
such a weak condition, caused a sudden and 
violent relapse, and, in spite of everything 
that could be done for me, I continued to 
fail. I rallied a little in the autumn, but 
only temporarily. 

In January, 1879, my mother's mother, who 
had lived with us for years and who was 
very dear to me, died at our house, after a 
short illness. I was so low at the time, that 
there could be no public notice of her death, 
and only a few intimate friends were admitted 
into our silent house. 

By the middle of February, my weakness 
was so great that most of the time I could 
scarcely speak in a whisper, and sometimes 
could only move my lips. Often the exertion 
of whispering one word would cause the per- 
spiration to start profusely ; and I would lie 
for hours needing something rather than ask 



12 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

for it. I could take no solid food, whatever, 
and it exhausted me greatly to swallow even 
liquid food. 

My disease had grown into blood consump- 
tion ; I was emaciated to a shadow, and my 
largest veins looked like mere threads. Noth- 
ing could keep me warm, and the chill of 
death seemed upon me. A great part of the 
time I lay gasping faintly for breath, and I 
suffered excruciatingly. Even the weight of 
my arms and limbs seemed to be almost un- 
endurable, and this terrible strain was con- 
stant. My pulse could scarcely be found, and 
I was not expected to live from one day to 
the next. Everything that the most skillful 
physicians could do for me, had been done ; 
only the "Great Physician" could restore me 
by His almighty power. I have no doubt that 
it was ordered by Providence, that, just at this 
time, there should appear in the daily paper a 
short account of the wonderful cures per- 
formed in answer to the prayers of Mrs. Ed- 
ward Mix, a colored lady, of Wolcottville, 
Conn. The article represented her as an 
earnest, humble Christian, who simply pro- 



INTRODUCTORY. 13 

fessed to be doing God's work. She had, her- 
self, been cured after years of ill health, by 
the prayers and laying on of hands of a Rev. 
Mr. Allen, of Springfield. Mother mentioned 
these facts to me, and the more I thought on 
the subject, the more I felt that a letter must 
be written her in regard to my own case. I 
had often heard of faith-cures before this, and 
there had been read to me some portions of 
W. W. Patton's book, " Remarkable Answers 
to Prayer," but, although not discrediting 
them, none had ever produced so great an 
impression on my mind as this short account 
of Mrs. Mix. I waited a few hours, then 
requested my sister to write her that I be- 
lieved her great faith might avail for me, if 
she would pray for my recovery, even if 
she were not present to lay her hands upon 
me. On Tuesday, February 25th, her answer 
came as follows : 

Wolcottville, Conn., February 24th, 1879. 

Miss Carrie Judd: 

I received a line from your sister Eva, 
stating your case, your disease and your faith. 



14 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

I can encourage you, by the Word of God, 
that " according to your faith " so be it unto 
you; and besides you have this promise, " The 
prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the 
Lord shall raise him up." Whether the per- 
son is present or absent, if it is a " prayer of 
faith " it is all the same, and God has promised 
to raise up the sick ones, and if they have 
committed sins to forgive them. Now this 
promise is to you, as if you were the only per- 
son living. Now if you can claim that prom- 
ise, I have not the least doubt but what you 
will be healed. You will first have to lay 
aside all medicine of every description. Use 
no remedies of any kind for anything. Lay 
aside trusting in the "arm of flesh," and lean 
wholly upon God and His promises. When 
you receive this letter I want you to begin to 
pray for faith, and Wednesday afternoon the 
female prayer-meeting is at our house. We 
will make you a subject of prayer, between 
the hours of three and four. I want you to 
pray for yourself, and pray believing and then 
act faith. It makes no difference how you 
feel, but get right out of bed and begin to 



INTRODUCTORY. IS 

walk by faith. Strength will come, disease 
will depart and you will be made whole. We 
read in the Gospel, " Thy faith hath made thee 
whole." Write soon. 

Yours in faith, 

Mrs. Edward Mix. 

Is it any wonder that in my utter weakness, 
my confirmed helplessness, and, above all, my 
lack of faith, that I was tempted to smile 
unbelievingly at the words " get right out of 
bed and begin to walk by faith " ? My con- 
science reproved me for my unbelief, and I 
began to pray for an increase of faith. I left 
off all medicine at once, though I confess it 
was with a struggle, for I was very dependent 
upon it for temporary alleviation of my ex- 
treme suffering. At the hour appointed by 
Mrs. Mix, members of our own family also 
offered up prayer, though not in my room. 
Just before this, I seemed to have no power, 
whatever, to grasp the promise. Terrible 
darkness and powerful temptations from Satan 
rose to obscure even the little faith I had, 
but, suddenly, my soul was filled with a child- 
like peace and confidence, different from any- 
thing I had ever before experienced. 



l6 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

There was no excitement, but, without the 
least fear or hesitation, I turned over and 
raised up alone, for the first time in over two 
years. My nurse, Mrs. H., who had taken 
care of me for nearly a year, was greatly 
affected, and began praising God for His 
wonderful power and mercy. 

Directly after, with a little support from 
my nurse, I walked a few steps to my chair. 
During that same hour, a decided change was 
perceptible in my color, circulation and pulse, 
and I could talk aloud with ease. Referring 
to my diary, which was kept by Mrs. H., I find 
under February 27 th, which was the day after 
my restoration : " Carrie moved herself in bed 
several times during the night. This after- 
noon she walked from her chair to the bed, a 
distance of about eight feet, by taking hold of 
my arms. The Lord strengthens her every 
hour, both physically and in faith. Blessed 
be His holy Name ! " Then, under February 
28th: "Carrie grows stronger, moves herself 
more easily, rests better nights, has a good 
appetite. I gave her a sponge-bath this after- 
noon, and I could not but notice the change 



INTRODUCTORY. 1 7 

in the color of her flesh ; instead of the yellow, 
dead look, it is pink and full of life." Under 
March ist: "This morning she drew on her 
stockings." March 2d: "Her chest and 
lungs have been strong ; she has talked aloud 
a great deal. Appetite good ; color fresh and 
clear." 

In about three weeks I could walk around 
the room without even having any one near 
me ; in four weeks I walked down stairs with 
a little assistance ; I walked very steadily from 
the first, and my joints, which had been so 
weakened by the hyperaesthesia, grew strong 
and firm at once. My muscles filled out very 
rapidly, but I suffered nothing from aching or 
lameness, even after I commenced going up 
and down stairs. 

The first pleasant day in April I went out 
of doors and into a neighbor's. It seemed as 
though it was almost too much joy to compre- 
hend, to really be out in the air and sunshine 
once more. I looked up at the windows of 
my room with a vague idea that there must 
be imprisoned there still, a prostrate, suffering 
creature, of whom I had once been a part, 



13 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

but now was freed from by some mysterious 
process. The thought of my long and terrible 
suffering, and of my sudden and joyful deliver- 
ance, almost overwhelms me now as I review 
it all so minutely. 

I will mention here, that it was especially 
noticeable, during my healing, that whenever 
I made any extra exertion of my own, sud- 
denly, and without the least apparent cause, 
my strength would fail me. It was soon 
revealed to me, that I was simply to look to 
the Lord for improvement; that as He had 
begun the work, He would carry it on without 
any strivings on my part. 

The more fully I cast myself upon Him, the 
more I was supported, and often I felt borne 
up as if by some buoyancy in the air, while 
there was little or no effort of my own. Even 
more wonderful, and infinitely more precious, 
than being brought from death unto life, phy- 
sically, is the renewed life which the soul 
experiences at the same time under the heal- 
ing influence of the Holy Spirit. A deep, 
intense love for God is implanted in the 
heart, worldly desires and ambitions sink into 



INTRODUCTORY. 19 

nothingness, the one absorbing thought is to 
be conformed more and more to the image of 
Christ, and the forgiveness of sins promised 
with the healing in James v: 14, 15, is ex- 
perienced as never before. 

My gain in flesh and strength was rapid, 
and my friends say that I am now looking 
better than ever before. The trouble in my 
head, which was almost constant for a long 
time before my prostration, entirely disap- 
peared when I was cured, and I can do a vast 
amount of studying and writing without even 
a slight headache. I can also take very long 
walks and enjoy them. 

I wish to add that Dr. Charles Cullis, of 
Boston, Mass., whose faith-works and faith- 
cures are so widely known, kindly added his 
prayers for my complete recovery. 

All glory be to our merciful and loving 
Redeemer ! and that I may ever abide in Him, 
and bring forth the "fruit of the Spirit," is 
the daily prayer of my life. 

Carrie F. Judd. 



20 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

With my kind pastor's permission I publish 
the following letter; his reply to one which I 
received from a stranger : 

No. 790 Seventh Street, 
Buffalo, N. Y., March ijtA, 1880. 

Dear Sir : Miss Judd has shown me your 
favor of the nth inst., and requests me to 
vouch for her entire credibility. 

I do this with great pleasure, the more so 
that I have known her so long, and have been 
entirely conversant with all the facts in the 
case, from the beginning. I can assure you 
of her long and painful illness, of her utter 
and complete' prostration, of the immediate 
expectation of death by herself and all her 
friends ; during all those months I ministered 
at her bedside, and saw her draw nearer and 
nearer to the end. 

But suddenly, and, of course, by the inter- 
position of God, and doubtless in answer to 
the prayers of the Church, and of the faithful, 
she was, so to speak, in a day restored, and is 
now in perfect health. Of these facts I assure 
you. They are well known to all here, and 
you have only to ask any resident of Buffalo 



INTRODUCTORY. 2 1 

to be satisfied of the truthfulness of all that 
she may tell you. 

Why should it be accounted strange that 
God should raise one of His children from 
the bed of death ? I confess I see no reason. 
His promise was for all time, " unto you, and 
to your children," and if we gain less now, it 
is because we are less faithful, and not because 
His promise is less sure. 

I shall be glad to give you any further 
information in my power, if you desire it. 
Very truly, 

C. F. A. BlELBY, 
Rector St. Mary's-Church-on-the-Hill (Episcopal). 



22 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

CHAPTER II. 

THE POWER OF JESUS* NAME. 

I believe that the command comes to me, 
as it came to that restored and rejoicing man 
so many hundred years ago : " Go home to 
thy friends and tell them how great things the 
Lord hath done for thee, and hath had com- 
passion on thee." — St. Mark v : 19. A pre- 
cious thought it is to me, that, in the strong 
bond of fellowship and love which exists be- 
tween Christ's disciples, I may know you all 
as friends. So home to each one of you I 
would come, with the peculiar tenderness and 
sympathy which suffering draws forth from 
those who have suffered likewise, and I long 
to speak words of comfort, which will assure 
you that there is "balm in Gilead," and a 
"Physician there." 

It is with this end in view that I have re- 
lated, in the foregoing chapter, my experience 
of the Divine healing power, which has given 
me renewed life, spiritual and physical. 



THE POWER OF JESUS NAME. 23 

How strange and sad it is that when the 
Bible abounds in such rich promises for sup- 
plying the need both of soul and body, that 
we should be languishing in either. Let us 
together, earnestly and prayerfully, search 
God's Word, and by its light dispel the mists 
of unbelief, which prevent our seeing clearly 
the blessings which are only awaiting our 
grasp of faith. 

We are not apt to accept the Bible as liter- 
ally as we ought. We get into a dangerous 
habit of considering its exhortations as in a 
great degree figurative or sacredly poetic, or 
as relating to past generations and not to our 
own. It is no wonder, therefore, if we read 
our Guide of Life in a way so erroneous, that 
we get into very loose notions respecting our 
duties in obeying it. 

If we would accept every command con- 
tained in the Bible, as a direct command to us 
from our Lord, and obey them all as literally 
as they are intended to be obeyed, we should 
find inestimable blessings attending such a 
course. Having had light and grace given 
me to determine to do this, I have found that 



24 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

it is only needful for me to make the effort to 
obey, and the strength to do so comes im- 
mediately from a higher source. 

None of the Lord's injunctions are too 
difficult to obey, if we make the effort trusting 
in His strength, and who of us, that have kept 
the Lord's commandments, have not found 
that " in keeping of them there is great re- 
ward " ? — Psa. xix : 1 1. 

Let us look at the literal command which 
the inspired apostle gives concerning the sick. 
He says, "Is any sick among you? let him 
call for the elders of the church ; and let them 
pray over him, anointing him with oil in the 
name of the Lord : And the prayer of faith 
shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise 
him up ; and if he have committed sins, they 
shall be forgiven him." — James v: 14, 15. 

This is certainly not a grievous command, 
and yet how willing we are to go to every 
trouble and expense before following these 
simple and plain directions. Have they 
seemed to some of us, as seemed the instruc- 
tions of Elisha to Naaman, the leper, — too 
simple and easy to think of obeying? If so, 



THE POWER OF JESUS NAME. 25 

let us remember the words of Naaman's ser- 
vants, who "came near, and spake unto him, 
and said, My father, if the prophet had bid 
thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not 
have done it? how much rather then, when 
he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean ?" 

In St. Mark i: 32, occur these words: 
''And at even, when the sun did set, they 
brought unto Him all that were diseased ;" 
and again in St. Luke iv : 40, we read : " Now 
when the sun was setting, all they that had 
any sick with divers diseases brought them 
unto Him ; and He laid His hands on every 
one of them, and healed them. ,, Both St. 
Mark and St. Luke allude in these passages 
to the fact of its being evening and the time 
of the setting sun, and this seems to figura- 
tively illustrate the fact that only in the even- 
ing of human hope were they willing to go to 
Christ for peace and healing. And why do 
we wait until the glare of disappointing 
earthly suns has passed away, before we are 
ready to perceive the soothing, lovely light of 
the " Sun of Righteousness," which unto those 
who fear God's name, shall " arise with heal- 
ing in His wings." 



26 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

With the promise in James so plain before 
us, it is strange and sad that we should lan- 
guish so long on beds of suffering, making no 
effort to claim this promised healing; and 
why ? — let us consider some of the difficulties 
which are shutting out so many of us from a 
full enjoyment of our privileges. 

A great obstacle which meets us at the out- 
set, is the sad unbelief of the world, and, 
sadder still, of many professed Christians. 
When the fainting hope of some suffering one 
is revived by a prayerful reading of the gra- 
cious promises in the Bible, that hope is often 
shattered by some friend who says rebuk- 
ingly: " O, you cannot be healed in that 
way. Miracles long ago ceased." 

What matters it to our readily deceived 
hearts, that we can find nothing in the Bible 
to support this assertion ? — we suppose that 
the world must be right about it, and so we 
believe the word of our fellow-creatures, and 
make "the Word of God of none effect" 
thrpugh these traditions. — St. Mark vii : 13. 

A great and good man, who is widely 
known all over the United States, wrote to a 



27 

friend, concerning the subject of faith-healing : 
" With the open Book before me, I do not see 
why these things cannot be." It is because 
we do not keep our eyes closely enough fixed 
on our open Bibles that we fail to "behold 
wondrous things out of God's law." Can 
we say with David : " O, how I love Thy 
law ! it is my meditation all the day" ? 

It is written in Acts ii : 39, " For the prom- 
ise is unto you, and to your children, and 
to all that are afar off." St. Peter is speaking 
of the gift of the Holy Ghost, and none who 
have felt the wonderful power, which, in an- 
swer to *the "prayer of faith," gives healing 
to soul and body, can doubt that it is the 
power of the Holy Spirit, promised to all ages 
and generations. There are many who refuse 
to give credence to faith-cures, because, as 
they strenuously assert, " the age of miracles 
is past." What authority they can give for 
this statement, remarkable as it is when so 
many miracles, spiritual and physical, are be- 
ing performed by the power of the Holy 
Spirit, every day, we leave them to tell ; but 
we would press the inquiry upon them — if 



2% THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

these marvelous cures are not wrought by 
God, by what power are they performed? 
Some would attribute them to " physical phe- 
nomena," " influence of mind over mind," 
" faith co-operating with the faculties of 
volition," etc., but when we present for their 
investigation, well-authenticated cases where 
cancers, tumors, consumption, and other fatal 
diseases are cured in a wonderfully short time 
in answer to the "prayer of faith," when — as 
in a case which Dr. Cullis relates in his 
introduction to the book " Dorothea Trudel " 
— broken bones unite in less than twenty-four 
hours because of a little child's faith, then 
their reasons cannot seem plausible to the 
most prejudiced minds. 

They must either stubbornly refuse to be- 
lieve in these cases of healing without giv- 
ing any reasons for their unbelief; or else 
rightfully ascribe them to Divine power; or 
(and I shudder at the thought of any one's 
committing such blasphemy) attribute them to 
diabolical agency. 

There were those who attributed to Satan, 
even the miracles which Christ performed 



THE POWER OF JESUS NAME. 29 

while on the earth. The Pharisees said : a This 
fellow doth not cast out devils but by Beelze- 
bub, the prince of devils." Let us remember 
Christ's answer, and beware lest we make any 
approach to that terrible and unpardonable 
sin, which shall not be forgiven men " neither 
in this world, neither in the world to come." 
" Wherefore I say unto you that all manner of 
sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men : 
but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost 
shall not be forgiven unto men." — St. Matt, 
xii: 31. 

Immediately after this rebuke our Saviour 
adds : " Either make the tree good and his 
fruit good ; or else make the tree corrupt and 
his fruit corrupt : for the tree is known by his 
fruit." Let us pause a moment to ask what 
fruit is brought forth in the lives of those who 
have experienced these "miracles of healing." 

Do we see these restored people rushing 
into vanity and sin, using their renewed health 
and strength in the service of the devil ? Far 
from it ! We see them consecrating every 
power of soul and body to loving, joyful ser- 
vice for their Lord and Master ; we see them 



30 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

a "peculiar people, zealous of good works," 
desirous of following as closely as possible the 
footsteps of their Saviour. 

The man whose sight had been restored, 
said to the Pharisees when speaking of Jesus : 
"Why herein is a marvelous thing, that ye 
know not from whence He is, and yet He hath 
opened mine eyes. Now we know that God 
heareth not sinners : but if any man be a 
worshiper of God, and doeth His will, him He 
heareth," and we may say likewise that it 
would indeed be a " marvelous thing " if de- 
voted Christians, who give their lives entirely 
to the Lord, are servants of the devil. 

Dr. Charles Cullis, through whose " prayer 
of faith " so many sufferers have been healed, 
says : " I have noticed in every case of heal- 
ing by prayer, as great a blessing has come to 
the soul as to the body. This has been in- 
variable." And why should it not be so, 
when we are told that if the sick person has 
" committed sins they shall be forgiven him " ? 
Whoever takes it upon himself to rebuke 
those who perform miracles in the name of 
Jesus Christ, will do well to read our Saviour's 



THE POWER OF JESUS NAME. 3 1 

own words on this subject: "And John an- 
swered Him, saying, Master, we saw one cast- 
ing out devils in Thy name, and he followeth 
not us ; and we forbade him, because he fol- 
loweth not us. But Jesus said, Forbid him 
not, for there is no man which shall do a mir- 
acle in My name, that can lightly speak evil 
of Me. For he that is not against us is on 
our part." — St. Mark ix : 38-40. In My name, 
Christ says, and that is the vast difference 
between the miracles wrought by the powe-r of 
the Holy Spirit, and those false wonders per- 
formed in the name of the Virgin or at the 
shrines of other saints. 

St. Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said 
unto the " rulers of the people, and elders of 
Israel," " If we this day be examined of the 
good deed done to the impotent man, by what 
means he is made whole; be it known unto 
you all * * * that by the name of Jesus 
Christ of Nazareth, Whom ye crucified, Whom 
God raised from the dead, even by Him doth 
this man stand here before you whole. Neither 
is there salvation in any other : for there is 
none other name under Heaven given among 



32 " THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

men whereby we must be saved." — Acts iv: 
9,^0, 12. 

That false miracles could not be performed 
in the name of Christ was proven by the ter- 
rible experience of the unconverted Jews, 
related in Acts xix : 13, 15, 16. 

11 Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exor- 
cists, took upon them to call over them which 
had evil spirits, the name of the Lord Jesus, 
saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul 
preacheth. And the evil spirit answered and 
said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know ; but who 
are ye ? And the man in whom the evil spirit 
was, leaped on them, and overcame them, and 
prevailed against them, so that they fled out 
of that house, naked and wounded." 

In Christ's parting commission to His dis- 
ciples He mentions, among other signs that 
shall follow those who believe, " they shall lay 
hands on the sick and they shall recover," but 
notice that all of these wonderful things were 
to be done in Christ's name: "In My name 
shall they cast out devils." 

O, let us not refuse to recognize the power 
of our Redeemer's name, and when we cry 



THE POWER OF JESUS NAME. $$ 

for mercy to that blessed Saviour, let us, like 
blind Bartimeus, persist until our calls reach 
His gracious ear. There are many sweet and 
comforting lessons in this account of the heal- 
ing of Bartimeus, if we read it with under- 
standing. 

"And it came to pass, that as He was come 
nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by 
the wayside begging." How in our spiritual 
blindness we all sit " by the wayside begging" — 
asking paltry alms of those who are unwilling, 
and, again, of those who are unable, of their 
own poverty, to give — when if we would but 
seek Jesus, we should receive with Him the 
fullness of all blessing. " He that spared not 
His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, 
how shall He not with Him freely give us all 
things ? " 

This man heard the tread of the multitude, 
and he asked what it meant, " And they told 
him that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by." 
Happy are we if we are not spiritually deaf 
as well as blind; for many there be who will 
not listen to the sound of the footsteps of 
those who follow Christ, "lest," as the Lord 



34 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

says, " they should be converted and I should 
heal them." But if we are ready and willing 
to ask what these things mean, we shall not 
fail of receiving the answer, " Jesus of Naza- 
reth passeth by." 

Then our cry, like that of blind Bartimeus, 
will arise above all other tumult, " Jesus, Thou 
Son of David, have mercy on me." And they 
which went before, rebuked him, that he should 
hold his peace ; just as many who go before, 
or occupy the first place in Christian churches 
nowadays, take it upon themselves to rebuke 
those who seek for Christ's healing mercy. If 
many of the ministers or " elders " of the 
present day had lived at that time and heard 
the blind man's cries, they would doubtless 
have represented to him the exceeding sinful- 
ness of seeking to be delivered from an in- 
firmity which he ought simply to bear with 
resignation. 

O, how we limit the power and mercy of 
the Great Shepherd! How unwilling we are 
to accept what God, of His exceeding good- 
ness, is so willing to give ! 

But Bartimeus' faith in Christ's mercy was 



THE POWER OF JESUS NAME. 35 

much greater than his fear of those who re- 
buked him, and "he cried so much the more, 
Thou Son of David have mercy on me." If 
he had only listened to the reproving voices 
of those who went before, and had not per- 
sisted in turning from them to Jesus Himself, 
how great the blessing he must have forfeited. 

Did Jesus pass by that blind man with a 
rebuking word and a command to submit 
patiently to his affliction ? Ah, no ! for was 
not that merciful Saviour Himself willing to 
bear, in his own body, the sins and sorrows of 
the blind man, and of all those who will by 
faith cast their burden upon the cross ? 

We hear His voice in kindness and. power, 
"What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? " 
Think what these words would mean coming 
even from an earthly monarch; how much 
more do they convey spoken by Him to whom 
" all power has been given in heaven and in 
earth." 

" What wilt thou ? " — we may each one of 
us hear this question from our Lord, and as 
many of His promises as we choose to accept 
by faith, will be made real to us. 



$6 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

The blind man's request was that he might 
receive his sight. He was then capable of 
understanding only the blessing of having the 
darkness removed from his physical vision, 
but with Jesus' words, "Receive thy sight, thy 
faith hath saved thee,'* his soul also received 
new powers of vision, and he joyfully beheld 
the " True Light " Who hath said, " I am the 
light of the world : he that followeth Me shall 
not walk in darkness, but shall have the light 
of life." 

" And immediately he received his sight, 
and followed Him glorifying God : and all the 
people when they saw it gave praise unto 
God." It is recorded of this man, as of so 
many others who were healed by Christ, that 
his first act, after being made whole, was to 
glorify God. Adoration is the essential out- 
pouring of the heart which recognizes its 
Redeemer, who " Himself took our infirmities, 
and bare our sicknesses." — St. Matt, viii : 17. 

And, like David, we may sing with joyful 
lips, " Bless the Lord, O ! my soul, and forget 
not all His benefits : who forgiveth all thine 
iniquities ; who healeth all thy diseases." 



THE NATURE OF FAITH. 37 

CHAPTER III. 

THE NATURE OF FAITH. 

I trust that there are many of you, my 
dear friends, who, clinging closely to the word 
of God instead of to the traditions of men, 
are already beginning to realize the blessed 
privilege which may be yours — that of accept- 
ing your Saviour as the " Great Physician " of 
your soul and body. 

You may answer that you long ago accepted 
Him as the Physician of your soul ; but do 
you really feel satisfied that you have expe- 
rienced a complete spiritual healing? Are 
you fully assured that your sins are forgiven, 
and that your soul has been born anew ? Do 
you feel that you have been brought to the 
full salvation, which Christ meant should be 
ours, when He suffered on Calvary? I doubt 
not that there are many hearts that will give 
sad answers to these questions, knowing, as 
they do, that they have not been "filled with 
joy and with the Holy Ghost." — Acts xiii : 52. 



3§ THE PRAYER OF FAITH- 

I beg of you then to trust God for a more 
complete healing of soul than you have ever 
known before, and trust Him, also, for the 
healing of your weak, suffering body. I think 
I can tell, from my own experience, one of the 
first temptations which you will encounter in 
your attempt to do this. You are probably 
saying : tl Other people may claim the prom- 
ise in Jas. v : 14, 15, but I am not good enough. 
God would not thus favor any but those who 
had led very holy lives." 

We are so apt to lose sight of the all-im- 
portant fact that we have no righteousness of 
our own, that "there is none righteous; no, 
not one," but we may, and must, put on Christ, 
as our righteousness. We all know this; but 
do we all realize it? Considering our own 
unworthiness, we have none of us a right to 
present a single petition to God. " For there 
is no -difference; for all have sinned, and come 
short of the glory of God." — Rom. iii : 22, 23. 

It is one of Satan's delusions, that even 
while we are thus holding back, from a sense 
of our sinfulness, we are consoled for our 
lack of faith by a half-conscious acknowl- 
edgment of what we think is our humility.. 



THE NATURE OF FAITH. 39 

The right kind of humility is indeed very 
necessary; but we must look entirely away 
from self, to our Saviour, and thus realize 
what we may receive through His merits. We 
may "come boldly to the throne of grace" 
through " the righteousness of God, which is 
by faith of Jesus Christ unto all, and upon all 
them that believe." 

Clad in the robe of His righteousness, we 
may then claim all the wonderful blessings 
extended to the righteous. 

We read : " Thou Lord wilt bless the right- 
eous, with favor wilt thou compass him as 
with a shield ; " " The Lord loveth the right- 
eous ; " " His secret is with the righteous;" 
" The desire of the righteous shall be granted ; " 
" The righteous is delivered out of trouble ; " 
''The way of the righteous is made plain;" 
and many more such precious texts, which, 
when we realize that they may be ours through 
Christ, make our hearts sing for joy. 

In the examples of great faith, given us in 
the Gospels, we see how persistently and fear- 
lessly the most humble sinners approached 
their holy Lord, when losing sight of them- 
selves in Him. 



40 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

Notice the difference between the conduct 
of the ten lepers who "stood afar off," and 
that of the other poor leper we read of, who 
came to Jesus, "beseeching Him and kneeling 
down to Him." The former dared not ap- 
proach Christ, because of the law respecting 
their terrible disease, but the latter had, it 
seems, in his importunity and faith, dared to 
approach so near the Saviour, that He could 
touch him by putting forth His hand. 

So we, viewing ourselves in the light of the 
law, see our souls so vile and loathsome that 
we dare not approach the Holy One ; but 
when, with the eye of faith, we behold our- 
selves as already cleansed by the blood of 
Jesus, we feel no longer our pollution, but are 
ready to approach Him,, and receive " accord- 
ing to our faith." 

When we begin to realize that " God is no 
respecter of persons," and that all who go to 
Him in the name of Jesus Christ, are accepted 
alike ; when we have given up the idea that 
any one can have righteousness of his own, 
then a very great barrier is broken down be- 
tween God's good gifts and ourselves. But 



THE NATURE OF FAITH. 41 

Satan is always ready to set up new barriers, 
and he comes to us with difficulties concerning 
our faith. 

We are apt to regard faith as something 
high and mysterious, which no one can attain 
unless born with an unusual degree of it. 
Some of us are deceived by thinking that 
great and repeated struggles of mind are 
necessary in order to secure it, and this idea 
is pretty strongly rooted, until we really un- 
derstand the nature of faith. I could not 
express this erroneous notion better than by 
repeating the very remark which a lady made 
to me not long ago. After questioning me 
about my cure, she exclaimed: "Well, I'm 
sure / never could muster up enough faith ! " 

Faith is belief, and the question is not how 
much we must believe God's word, but 
whether we accept it as true or not true ; 
whether we deem it reliable or not reliable. 
There is no neutral ground between faith and 
unbelief. Of all Satan's delusions, none, per- 
haps, are more delusive than the errors he 
puts into our minds regarding faith. Let us 
take the Bible definition of the word : " Faith 



42 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

is the substance (margin, confidence) of things 
hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." — 
Heb. xi : i. 

We know that in human transactions if we 
have the confide?ice that we shall have what we 
are hoping for, we make the same calculations, 
mentally, at least, that we should if we 
already had it, and when we place that con- 
fidence in One who cannot fail, we really 
have the substance, itself, of our hopes. Again, 
if we commission a reliable friend to perform 
some errand for us, we believe that he will do 
it, and therefore that belief or faith is the 
evidence in our mind of things as yet unseen. 
Before we have the evidence of our senses in 
regard to the matter, we accept the evidence 
of faith. 

Having faith in God is believing His word 
without looking at probabilities or possibil- 
ities, as humanly viewed ; without regarding 
natural circumstances; without considering 
any apparent obstacles in the way of His 
keeping His promises. If every avenue of 
hope seems closed to our human vision, God 
can open new ones, and we must trust His 



THE NATURE OF FAITH. 43 

word through everything. It is not faith sim- 
ply to believe when we can see all the work- 
ings of Providence ; it is faith not to be 
staggered at any complication of adverse 
circumstances. " And this is the confidence 
that we have in Him, that if we ask anything 
according to His will He heareth us : and 
if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we 
ask, we know that we have the petitions that 
we desired of him." — i John v: 14, 15. "And 
whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will 
I do, that the Father may be glorified in the 
Son. If ye shall ask anything in My name, I 
will do it." — St. John xiv: 13, 14. 

We get some valuable knowledge, in regard 
to faith, from the touching and eloquent 
recital of the healing of the poor woman, in 
St. Mark v: 25-34. She had been afflicted 
with her disease for twelve years, "and had 
suffered many things of many physicians, and 
had spent all that she had, and was nothing 
bettered, but rather grew worse." 

How exactly the language of this verse de- 
scribes the experience of many poor sufferers 
nowadays, who having sought relief by every 



44 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

means possible, find themselves in a worse 
condition than when they first sought their 
physicians, and who are left without money 
to pay more doctors* bills, even were they not 
aware that no human skill could remove or 
alleviate their sufferings. 

Just at the time of her utter discourage- 
ment, this woman " heard of Jesus." Perhaps 
she had heard of His wonderful works before 
this, but until she had tried every means, and 
they had failed, she was probably not ready 
or willing to hear of Him with faith, and this 
is apt to be the case with us. 

This poor woman " when she had heard of 
Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched 
His garments. For she said, If I may touch 
but His clothes, I shall be whole." O, that we 
might thus press through the crowd of doubts 
and fears, and let nothing stay us until we 
have touched the hem of Christ's garment ! 

What, in this poor sufferer's case, was the 
inevitable result of that touch of faith ? " She 
felt in her body that she was healed of that 
plague." 

A marked lesson is conveyed in the Saviour's 
inquiry, "Who touched my clothes?" and the 



THE NATURE OF FAITH. 45 

answer which He intended this question to 
bring forth: "And His disciples said unto 
Him, Thou seest the multitude thronging 
Thee, and sayest Thou, who touched Me?" 

How significant is this of the multitudes 
who throng Jesus every day, who draw near 
to Him in prayer, and yet, like this multitude 
who "followed Him and thronged Him," 
draw not near in faith. Some who were in 
that throng were undoubtedly there out of 
curiosity ; some may have passed near and 
touched Him as an experiment, or test of 
His power ; and some, even, with prayers on 
their lips, may have been uttering mockeries 
which they did not expect, and perhaps did 
not wish, to have regarded. 

The disciples marveled that Christ should 
say, "Who touched me?" when they knew 
that each moment His contact with some one 
was unavoidable ; but He alone could discern 
between the touch of faith and the touch of 
unbelief. 

" And He looked round about to see her 
that had done this thing." Is it not comfort- 
ing to know that our blessed Lord, in His 



46 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

tender solicitude for us, will thus take such 
particular notice of every one who dares 
reach out the hand of faith to touch His 
sacred robe ? 

And what does the sequel teach ? That we 
must not keep silent about the great things 
which Christ does for us. For His glory we 
must confess them "before all the people," 
and then to us, as it did to her, will sound 
His reassuring voice : " Go in peace." 

The physical healing seems to have been 
given first in this instance, and it was only 
when she confessed the wondrous work 
wrought in her, that He gave the " peace 
which passeth all understanding " to her soul. 
It may be that we shall be called upon to 
confess Christ, "with fearing and trembling," 
as did she; but just as surely He will bid us 
be of good comfort, and say : " Thy faith 
hath made thee whole." 

Sometimes we cherish the idea that faith is 
in itself so meritorious that it entitles us to 
proportionate blessings ; but we must keep in 
mind, that it would make no difference how 
strong was our belief in God's power, had He 



THE NATURE OF FAITH. 47 

not given His Son to die for us, that we might 
be accepted in Him. 

" Thou believest that there is one God ; 
thou doest well; the devils also believe and 
tremble."— Jas. ii : 19. But we must also be- 
lieve that it is not for our faith's sake, but for 
Christ's sake alone that we may have all the 
blessings promised us in His name. Instead 
of thinking of the merits of faith, we must try- 
to understand how great a sin is unbelief. 

We may realize how much we lose by it, 
but not how criminal it is in the sight of God. 
If we would look at our unbelieving conduct 
with the thought that we are representing the 
faithful God a liar, we should put new force 
upon the saying: " For whatsoever is not of 
faith is sin." — Rom. xiv : 2. "Whatsoever" — 
this gives us new ideas concerning the sinful- 
ness which we must ask God to forgive ; for 
how much, how very much, there is in all of 
us, which is "not of faith." 

Faith is not meritorious, but it is essential. 
We must believe fully in God's power, and in 
His mercy through Christ, in order to put 
ourselves in a position to receive the desired 



48 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

blessing. Every doubt removes us just so far 
from claiming the promises ; for since faith is 
laying hold of a blessing, doubt is just the 
opposite — letting go of it. If we take hold by 
faith of something we desire, then let go be- 
cause of doubt, and continue our indecision, 
doubt generally conquers, and we let go alto- 
gether. Having once laid hold of a promise, 
by faith, we must keep hold of it. 

We all have the germ of faith in the power 
to believe intellectually, but it requires the 
quickening of the Holy Spirit to change a 
mere intellectual belief into that living faith 
by which the promises are made real to us. 
We must first use the God-given powers of 
our mind and determine to believe, praying 
at the same time for the Spirit to enable us to 
do so. We are told in Gal. v: 22, that faith 
is the "fruit of the Spirit. ,> 

A lady who was cured of a nine-years' 
blindness, in answer to prayer, wrote to a 
friend : " I now understand the mystery of 
the miracles. ,, She had experienced the light 
and power which had given her new vision, 
spiritual as well as physical, and could now 



THE NATURE OF FAITH. 49 

understand how the faith, "without works and 
dead," could be renewed and bring forth fruit 
when quickened by the Spirit. 

If we plead in Christ's name for the Com- 
forter, we have full assurance that we shall be 
answered, for Jesus left us these precious 
words : " If ye then being evil know how to 
give good gifts unto your children, how much 
more shall your Heavenly Father give the 
Holy Spirit to them that ask Him." We have 
only to desire and then to ask, 

I remember when the wings of faith, my 
carrier-dove, were so heavy laden with the 
pollution of my sinful and discouraged soul, 
that my messages could not arise to Heaven. 
But were they not, therefore, received of 
God? Yes, though I knew it not then, He 
mercifully bent to hear my petitions, though 
my faith could not arise to Him. The feeblest 
flutterings of our faith will arouse His tender 
love, and He will revive and strengthen until 
it soars trustfully upward. 

I will take an extract from Rev. Theo. 
Monod's writings : " Do you think it would 
be a great thing — do you think it would be a 



50 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

happy thing for you to give that poor body 
of yours, that poor heart of yours, to God to 
live in ? Do you think God would accept it ? 
Hear this one word. Jesus Christ says that 
even as a father will not give a stone for bread 
to his hungering child, even so — no, He does 
not say that — He says, i how much more shall 
your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit ' — 
to them that deserve Him? No! To them 
that merely keep wishing for Him? No! 
To them that ask for Him. * Ask and ye 
shall receive/ " 

" The Shepherd does not ask of thee 

Faith in thy faith, but only faith in Him ; 

And this He meant in saying, ' Come to Me.' 
In light or darkness seek to do His will, 
And leave the work of faith to Jesus still." 

While most of us limit God's mercy, there 
are others who limit His power. It is strange 
that any who acknowledge God's omnipotence, 
can be so inconsistent as to suppose that His 
power cannot extend to one disease as well as 
to another, and yet I have heard people spec- 
ify certain cases, and ask, incredulously, " But 
do you think that they could be cured in that 
way ? " 



THE NATIJRE OF FAITH. 5 I 

The prophet says: "Ah, Lord God! be- 
hold, Thou hast made the heaven and the 
earth, by Thy great power and stretched-out 
arm, and there is nothing too hard for Thee." 

Many who seek this healing as a last resort, 
have very little faith that their cases are within 
reach of the " Great Physician's " power, and 
to them a wonderful lesson is presented in the 
account of healing given in Mark ix : 17-30. 

The father of the afflicted child had taken 
him to the disciples to be healed by them, but 
he found that they were unable to cast out 
the devil. What little faith the man had pos- 
sessed, was evidently weakened by their fail- 
ure, and it was almost in despair that he spoke 
these words to Jesus, " But if Thou canst do 
anything, have compassion on us and help 
us." Do not many of us go with this feeling 
in our hearts, " Lord, if Thou canst do any- 
thing, have compassion on us " ? 

But Jesus gently rebukes this lack of faith, 
and proceeds to instruct him in what spirit he 
must approach Him, if he would have his 
child cured. 



52 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

" Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, 
all things are possible to him that believeth." 
Let us stop a moment to consider the two 
glorious possibilities, " with God all things are 
possible," and "all things are possible to him 
that believeth." 

How many of us, judging from our own 
faithless conduct, would have replied that we 
did not know how to believe, that we could 
not believe, that we were not born with faith 
and were, therefore, incapable of believing. 

Did that troubled, sorrowing father answer 
in this way ? Ah, no ! he knew the urgency 
of his son's case; he knew that the only con- 
dition was believing, and, without searching 
his heart to see if he found there some mys- 
terious emotion, such as many people now 
understand faith to be, he at once signified 
his willingness to fulfil the necessary condition 
by making the effort to believe, 

"And straightway the father of the child 
cried out and said, with tears, Lord, I believe, 
help Thou mine unbelief." Straightway, with- 
out waiting a moment, even while with tears 
he was bemoaning his lack of faith and ask- 



THE NATURE OF FAITH. 53 

ing Christ to help his unbelief, he made the 
effort of intellect and will, and said, " Lord, I 
believe. " 

Not — " Lord I will believe when Thou dost 
help mine unbelief," but — " I will believe, I 
do believe this moment." 

He had acted upon the determination to 
believe in spite of himself, in spite of his un- 
belief, and as he made the effort the power was 
given him. 



54 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 



CHAPTER IV. 

god's blessed will for his children. 

There are some dear suffering ones who 
think they may not claim this promised heal- 
ing, because it might not be the Lord's will 
for them to be cured. That Gocf has a wise 
purpose in allowing sickness to come upon us> 
we may be certain. He doubtless uses it as 
one means of the loving chastening, with 
which he afflicts His children ; and to under- 
stand better why God chastens us, let us look 
at Heb. xii : n. " Now no chastening for the 
present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous; 
nevertheless, afterward, it yieldeth the peace- 
able fruit of righteousness unto them which 
are exercised thereby." 

In every providence it is the design of our 
loving Father to bring us nearer to Himself; 
to melt our stubborn wills until they may 
blend with His will, which is all love for us, 
and to cause us to yield ourselves, souls and 
bodies, "a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable 
unto the Lord." 



god's blessed will. 55 

Some may harbor the idea that God is very- 
reluctant to remove suffering from us — that 
He is a hard Master who will only relieve us 
when we have wearied Him with our impor- 
tunity; but it is often because we have strayed 
from our tender Shepherd, that He in mercy 
afflicts us, and it is because we are so unwill- 
ing to return, that the trial must needs con- 
tinue so long with some of us. 

There are other souls who are already near 
their Saviour, but whose very nearness causes 
them to catch such precious glimpses of the 
bliss of being still nearer their loved Re- 
deemer, that they plead with increasing ear- 
nestness for this privilege. And these, too, 
He purifies by suffering, until they are freed 
from the dross which prevents the gold from 
reflecting His image clearly. 

If these suffering ones would yield at once 
to the Refiner, their unbelief, which represents 
the baser metal they had wished destroyed, 
the trial would quickly end, because no longer 
needful. And this can be done by faith — by 
accepting Christ fully and putting all our 
dependence on Him. We read that the chas- 



56 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

tening brings forth the "fruit of righteous- 
ness," but if we believe fully on Christ we 
may have His righteousness and a deliverance 
from our trial, for "the chastisement of our 
peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we 
are healed." 

A dear, Christian sister, who was long edu- 
cated in suffering, wrote me awhile ago, " I 
was honest in my desire to be wholly the 
Lord's, and nothing so reveals the Divine 
faithfulness as the very trials which were so 
deliberate, so protracted, and so thorough. 
It is strange how much we can endure before 
we are willing to stop and trust ! " " Stop and 
trust ! " — this is just what we must be brought 
to, sooner or later, and, as soon as we will, we 
may obtain deliverance by this means. 

I doubt not that our Saviour's loving heart 
yearns to grant our petitions the moment they 
are presented, but with what infinite patience 
and wisdom He waits, that we may be pre- 
pared to receive what we have asked of Him, 
and that will be when we are willing to stop 
our own endeavors and trust to the work 
which He has accomplished for us. As much, 



GODS BLESSED WILL. 57 

or as little, as we do this, we receive propor- 
tionate blessings, and Jesus has Himself said: 
"According to your faith be it unto you." 
This surely means that just as many of the 
benefits of His atonement as we choose to 
accept by faith (or belief in Him) may be 
ours. Would there be any good of soul and 
, body which this would fail to comprehend, if 
we could grasp His wonderful words in all 
their fullness? The Psalmist says : " No good 
thing will He withhold from them who walk 
uprightly," and when we are walking in 
Christ, trusting to His full salvation, we are 
walking uprightly. 

While it is a wonderfully blessed truth, that 
He will not yield to our entreaties before the 
end so essential to our eternal good is accom- 
plished, it is also just as blessed and true that 
we may obtain a speedy deliverance out of 
every trouble, by giving our souls and bodies 
unreservedly to Him, and resting upon His 
" full, perfect and sufficient sacrifice " for the 
sins of the whole world. 

I do not mean that no trial will come to us 
when we have entered upon this life of faith; 



58 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

for, if that were so, how could we understand 
the blessedness of having such a' mighty and 
conquering Saviour ? Just as we must first 
be convicted of sin to be able to rejoice in 
being freed from sin, so trials must often come 
to us that we may taste the joy of knowing 
that " God is our refuge and strength — a very 
present help in time of trouble." It is pre- 
cious to behold what wonderful deliverances 
He will work for us, even when we seem com- 
pletely hedged in, if we put our trust in Him. 
"O, taste and see that the Lord is good: 
blessed is the man that trusteth in Him. The 
young lions do lack and surfer hunger, but 
they that seek the Lord shall not want any 
good thing. Many are the afflictions of the 
righteous, but the Lord delivereth him out of 
them all." — Psalm xxxiv : 8, 10, 19. What 
wonderful, helpful words, and to think that all 
the blessedness the Bible tells about, may be- 
long to each and all of us who will claim it 
through Christ ! O, if we would all at this 
moment " taste and see that the Lord is good." 
We would only need one taste to make us 
desire to eat of His goodness evermore, but 



GODS BLESSED WILL. 59 

the trouble is, we will not accept the invitation 
to even taste. 

Jehovah said to Israel, " Open thy mouth 
wide and I will fill it," but they did not heed ; 
and just so we are crying because of our 
hunger and will not open our mouths. Hear 
the loving, grieving words, " O, that my peo- 
ple had hearkened unto me, and Israel had 
walked in my ways ! I should soon have sub- 
dued their enemies, and turned my hand 
against their adversaries." Does that sound 
as if our Lord rejoiced to see us groaning in 
affliction ? Then He tells with what He 
would have filled their mouths, — " He should 
have fed them also with the finest of the wheat, 
and with honey out of the Rock should I have 
satisfied thee." 

The prophet exhorts to repentance in these 
words, " Come and let us return unto the 
Lord, for He hath torn and He will heal us ; 
He hath smitten and He will bind us up." — 
Hoseavi: 1. And we read in Lamentations 
iii : 32, 33, " But though He cause grief, yet 
will He have compassion according to the 
multitude of His mercies. For He doth not 



60 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of 
men." 

And would this tender, loving Father, so 
much more merciful and loving than it is pos- 
sible for an earthly parent to be, refuse to 
deliver us from affliction, when His purpose is 
accomplished, and we are ready to trust fully 
to Him? 

How plainly are we shown throughout the 
Bible that it is not the Lord's will to put sick- 
ness upon us, if we will only obey His com- 
mands and have faith in His promises. We 
read, " But if thou shalt indeed obey His 
voice and do all that I speak, then I will be 
an enemy unto thy enemies, and an adversary 
unto thine adversaries; and ye shall serve the 
Lord your God * * * and I will 
take sickness away from the midst of thee." — 
Ex. xxiii : 22, 25. 

" Wherefore, it shall come to pass, if ye 
hearken to these judgments and keep and do 
them, that the Lord thy God shall keep unto 
thee the covenant and the mercy which He 
sware unto thy fathers, and the Lord will take 
away from thee all sickness, and will put none 



god's blessed WILL. 6 1 

of the evil diseases of Egypt, which thou 
knowest, upon thee/' — Deut. vii : 12, 15. 

If we trust fully in Christ's finished work, 
sin cannot hold us captive, for He " bare our 
sins in His own body on the tree, that we, 
being dead to sins, should live unto righteous- 
ness." — 1 Peter ii : 24. 

If we trust fully to His finished work, sick- 
ness shall not be able to hold us captive, for 
Christ " Himself took our infirmities, and bare 
our sicknesses." — St. Matt, viii : 17. And if 
we trust fully in that finished work, even the 
grave shall not hold us captive long, for " now 
is Christ risen from the dead, and become the « 
first fruits of them that slept." — 1 Cor. xv : 20. 

Sin, sickness and corruption are upon all 
humanity because of the first Adam's sin; 
but we may be delivered from sin, sickness 
and corruption because of the atonement of 
Christ, "the last Adam." "For as in Adam 
all die, even so in Christ shall all be made 
alive." — 1 Cor. xv: 22. 

O, dear, suffering friends, take the comfort 
of this, and believe that in Christ you may 
have every need of soul and body supplied. 



62 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

It is His will that we shall ask Him for both 
spiritual and physical healing, and, therefore, 
He has told us by His inspired apostle that 
" the prayer of faith shall save the sick and 
the Lord shall raise him up ; and if he have 
committed sins they shall be forgiven him." 

In the account of the healing of the leper, 
in St. Matt, viii : 2-4, we see one who had 
implicit faith in God's power, but who was 
seeking to know His will. "And behold 
there came a leper and worshiped Him, say- 
ing, Lord, if Thou wilt Thou canst make me 
clean." If Jesus had, before this, openly 
proclaimed, as we have since had proclaimed 
to us through His written Word, that any 
sick person who asked, believing, would be 
healed and have his sins forgiven, the man 
would have gone to Him with different words ; 
for Christ's will in the matter would have 
been already known to him. He would sim- 
ply have gone to Him claiming the promise, 
in words like these: "Lord, I believe that 
Thou hast power to make me clean, and Thou 
hast signified Thy willingness to do it." 

We think we have a perfect right to take 
our earthly friends at their word, and to ac- 



god's blessed will. 63 

cept promises made by them, and yet we are 
continually rejecting God's revealed word, and 
trying to gain for ourselves a peculiar and 
different revelation. 

We must act on our Lord's revealed will, 
and if we need any further revelation, par- 
ticularly designed for ourselves, we shall have 
it clearly and distinctly given us. 

Was the Lord's will for that poor leper any 
different from that which we may know from 
His written Word, He now wills for us ? No, 
the prayer of faith would save the sick then, 
and it will now. " And Jesus put forth His 
hand and touched him, saying, I will ; be 
thou clean, and immediately his leprosy was 
cleansed." 

Now, what is the difference between the 
case of the poor leper and that of our sick 
and suffering ones nowadays? The need is 
the same — healing for the sin-sick soul and 
body. Then, too, thank God ! we have the 
same " Great Physician " to call to our aid. 
He is as near us, now, as then He was near 
the leper; yes, even near enough for His 
blessed hand to touch us as it did him. The 



64 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

same tender heart, of which we read so often 
that it was "moved with compassion/', is 
ready, now, to feel for us. 

" For we have not a High Priest which can- 
not be touched with the feeling of our infirmi- 
ties. * * * * Let us, therefore, come boldly 
unto the throne of grace that we may obtain 
mercy, and find grace to help in time of 
need." 

The only existing difference between the 
poor leper's case and our own is, that when 
he first went to the Saviour he was confident 
only of His power to heal him, while we, 
relying on his revealed Word, may have, the 
certainty beforehand, not only of His power 
but also of His willingness to heal us. 

While we must be ready to bow with sub- 
mission to another revelation if it is made to 
our souls, we need not be waiting for it; we 
need not expect it. We may base our confi- 
dence on the word He has already given us, 

and we, too, shall be made "clean." Our 

« 

flesh shall come again like unto the flesh of 
a little child " (2 Kings v: 14), and our hearts 
shall be cleansed with the blood of Jesus. 



god's blessed will. 65 

We read in St. Matt, iv : 23: u And Jesus 
went about all Galilee * * * preaching the 
gospel of the kingdom and healing all manner 
of sickness, and all manner of disease among 
the people." While the tender Physician 
ministered to the body, taking away pain and 
disease, and imparting new life to the wasted 
frame, He was, at the same time, conferring 
that much more marvelous and precious gift, 
healing to the sinful, prostrate soul. Those 
who went to Jesus would not have thought of 
asking Him to restore their souls, and leave 
their bodies full of disease. Even those of 
them who realized, as we so fully realize, that 
the soul-healing is vastly above anything else 
in importance, would not have thought of 
pleading for the greater boon without the less. 
Why should they, why should we — when Christ 
is able and willing to give us both ? 

How surprised and dismayed any of us 
would be were we to read in the Bible that 
the )eper importuned Christ to heal his sinful 
soul, and yet added that he could not ask for 
his leprosy to be cleansed, as that would be 
too much to ask of Christ. We cannot con- 



66 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

ceive of the leper's making such a request 
when within reach of the Saviour's healing 
touch ; and if such a desire were granted him, 
can we help thinking that, in some respects, 
the spiritual healing must, of necessity, be 
imperfect ? 

And yet we see people whose conduct is 
precisely like this ; who give their hearts into 
Christ's keeping, but think the healing and 
keeping of their bodies would be too much to 
ask of Him, and that they can manage to 
attend to that, themselves! 

That the plague spots on the body, as well 
as on the -heart, were both the effects of the 
sin from which Christ came to save us, our 
sinless Saviour knew, and He would not, and 
did not, extend complete healing to the one 
and leave the other in bondage. 

O, that as many as "have knowledge" of 
our loving Physician, may do, as did those 
men in the land of Gennesaret, long ago, 
who, we read, "sent out into all that country 
round about, and brought unto Him all that 
were diseased, and besought Him that they 
might only touch the hem of His garment, 



god's blessed will. 67 

and as many as touched were made perfectly 
whole." 

Let us notice the words which Christ spoke 
to the poor woman of Canaan, when she 
pleaded with such humble persistency, for the 
restoration of her daughter : " Then Jesus 
answered and said unto her, O, woman, great 
is thy faith ! be it unto thee even as thou 
wilt. And her daughter was made whole 
from that very hour." 

Whenever, by faith, we approach very near 
our Lord, we may indeed hear His voice say- 
ing, "Be it unto thee even as thou wilt;" for, 
in that comforting nearness to Him, we are % 
taught His will for our souls and bodies, and, 
from its very blessedness, we can desire no 
other. "If ye abide in me, and my words 
abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it 
shall be done unto you." — St. John xv: 7. 
And looking at the verse following this, we 
learn what is Christ's will for us. "Herein 
is my Father glorified, that ye bear much 
fruit; so shall ye be my disciples." 

My friends, judge for yourselves : is it 
bearing much fruit to continue to be bound 



68 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

by sickness, when, if we would accept the 
healing so freely offered us, we might work 
with renewed strength in His vineyard. 

May we all strive to understand how 
beautiful and blessed God's will is for His 
children, and thus clear away the unbelief 
with which Satan binds us, in body and soul. 
Not until we are freed from his chains and 
"loosed from our infirmity," can we really 
know what it is to exclaim : " O, the glorious 
liberty of the children of God!" Are there 
not many of us who have tried to raise that 
shout, and have felt like the fettered slave, 
B to whom freedom is but a name? But the lib- 
erty triumphantly proclaimed in these words, 
may be to us a living reality, and Christ has 
said : " If the Son shall make you free, ye 
shall be free, indeed." — St. John viii : 36. 

He of Whom it is written, " Himself took 
our infirmities, and -bare our sicknesses," has 
made us free from spiritual and physical 
sickness if we will but accept that healing. 

Would any one say that that does not mean 
our infirmities,- and our sicknesses, just as 
much as the infirmities of those people whom 



god's blessed will. 69 

Christ healed, when He was on the earth? 
Did He suffer agony and death any more for 
them than for us? Hundreds and thousands 
of years can make no difference in Him, Who 
is the "same yesterday, to-day, and forever," 
and all the benefits of His loving kindness 
and tender mercy may be ours to-day. 



70 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

CHAPTER V. 

ANOINTING AND CONSECRATION. 

We complain that our faith is weak, and 
that our prayers are lifeless, but it is no 
wonder that we cannot expect answers to our 
prayers, when we have no idea of fulfilling 
God's conditions. Can you conceive what 
the glorious result would be, if each one of 
us, from this moment, strove to obey every 
command of our King? 

O, we are satisfied with such a heedless, 
half-hearted obedience, such as we would not 
render even an earthly parent ; then we mur- 
mur and are inclined to think secretly that 
we have been faithful, and God has not ! 

We think if we partly fulfil God's com- 
mands, that we have done our duty. Most 
of us are willing, probably, to pray for our 
restoration to health, as far as that is con- 
cerned, and some of us are willing to call for 
the ministers or " elders of the church" (the 
word " elder " was originally presbyter, from 



ANOINTING AND CONSECRATION. 7 1 

which our word priest is a corruption) to pray 
with us, but the instructions given in regard 
to anointing the sick person with oil, we 
consider quite superfluous and do not think 
of heeding them. 

Just here we must bear in mind, that it is 
not for us to mark out our path of duty, but 
to follow that which the Lord has marked 
out for us ; and since He enjoins the use' of 
the oil, we may be sure that He has a wise 
purpose in so doing. How glad we are to 
heed the slightest wish of a dear earthly 
friend, whether or not we deem it of impor- 
tance, and how much more ought we to feel 
thus toward our Heavenly Father, whose will, 
in its minutest details, is always important. 

Some may believe that the anointing spoken 
of in connection with healing the sick, was 
merely in conformance with some unimportant 
Jewish custom, but its significance, if we in- 
quire into it, will be found deep and pecu- 
liarly sacred. It is not simply anointing the 
sick person with oil, but " anointing him with 
oil in the name of the Lord." Profane, indeed, 
would that man be, who dared perform an 



J 2 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

idle or meaningless ceremony, in the name of 
the Lord of Hosts; and if we search the 
Scriptures for light on this subject of sacred 
anointing, we shall attach a deeper meaning 
to the command in James than ever before. 
Turning to the book of Leviticus, and 
reading the laws, "which were a shadow of 
good things to come," we find that oil was 
greatly used for sacred purposes, especially 
for anointing the priests and for offering it 
with the sacrifices. 

" And when any will offer a meat offering 
unto the Lord, his offering shali be of fine 
flour, and he shall pour oil itpon it y and put 
frankincense thereon." This is only one of 
the many texts which refer to the mingling of 
oil with the sacrifices. 

Commenting upon the frequent use of oil 
in olden times, a learned bishop writes : " Oil 
was anciently in very high esteem among the 
eastern nations on various accounts, and as 
they were wont to express almost every matter 
of importance by actions as well as words, one 
way of setting anything apart and appropri- 
ating it to an honorable use, was by anointing 



ANOINTING AND CONSECRATION.^ 73 

it with oil. Therefore we find Jotham, in his 
parable, makes the olive tree speak of its 
fatness as that ' wherewith they honor God 
and man.' — Judges ix : 9. Accordingly the 
tabernacle and temple and their furniture 
were consecrated by anointing them. And 
almost every sacrifice had oil mixed with 
flour added to it when it was offered up." 

Both the sacrifices and the priests were, of 
course, typical of Christ's atonement and 
Priesthood, and the significance of the typical 
anointing is made clear to us in passages like 
the following : St. Peter says : " That word, 
I say, ye know * * * how God anointed Jesus 
of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with 
power. Who went about doing good and 
healing all that were oppressed of the devil, 
for God was with Him." The wonderful and 
blessed anointing of the Holy Spirit, first 
poured upon Jesus Christ, and then through 
His mediatorial office, shed forth on His faith- 
ful followers, was the precious fulfilling of the 
Levitical foreshadowing. 

We read in the prophecy of Isaiah : " And 
it shall come to pass, in that day, that his 



74 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

burden shall be taken away from off thy 
shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and 
the yoke shall be destroyed, because of the 
anointing" 

Deliverance was to come, because of this 
anointing of the Holy One, and Christ Him- 
self, quoting from this same prophet, says: 
" The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because 
He hath anointed me to preach the gospel to 
the poor, He hath sent me to heal the broken- 
hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives 
and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at 
liberty them that are bruised." — St. Luke 
iv: 18. 

Since Christ's righteousness may be ours, so 
this anointing of the Holy Spirit may be ours, 
by faith in Him ; as we read : " Now He which 
stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath 
anointed us is God." And again : "But the 
anointing which ye have received of Him, 
abideth in you, and ye need not that any man 
teach you ; but as the same anointing teacheth 
you of all things, and is truth and is no lie, 
and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide 
in Him." 



ANOINTING AND CONSECRATING. 75 

And this brings us to the precious signifi- 
cance of the anointing of the sick with oil, 
when prayer is offered for their recovery ; it is 
the outward sign of the inward anointing 
which is to heal and renew the soul and body, 
It is the setting apart to a holy use of the 
new life and strength imparted by the Holy 
Spirit. As in those olden times the tabernacle 
and the temple and their furniture were con- 
secrated by anointing them with oil, so we 
may consider that the " earthly house of this 
tabernacle'* which is the temple of the Holy 
Spirit, is likewise consecrated as " holy unto 
the Lord." 

While the one important and essential 
anointing is that of the Holy Ghost, it is also 
important and very comforting, to obey God's 
command concerning the anointing with oil. 

We read that the disciples, when they were 
preaching the gospel of repentance, " anointed 
with oil many that were sick, and healed 
them." 

Dr. Cullis, of Boston, fulfils the literal com- 
mand and anoints the forehead of the sick 
person with oil, when he can be present with 



?]6 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

the one for whom he is praying. Mr. and 
Mrs. Mix, Rev. Mr. Allen and Mr. Zeller, all 
of whom have been very successful in plead- 
ing for the restoration of the sick, also anoint 
with oil in the name of the Lord. Then, if 
the renewing of the Holy Spirit is to be 
thoroughly accomplished, we must definitely 
and solemnly consecrate every power of soul 
and body to the Lord, and it is indeed a 
glorious privilege to belong so entirely to Him, 
that there will be no hindrance to His using 
us in His blessed service. 

What indescribable joy it is, to be used in 
this way, none can know until they have re- 
ceived God's anointing for the work; but if 
we are wholly consecrated, nothing can hinder 
the anointing of the Spirit, for He will seal us 
with the " earnest of our inheritance." 

" Oh, what a life is theirs who live in Christ ; 

How vast the mystery, — 
Reaching in height to Heaven, and in its depth, 

The unfathomed sea." 

When Aaron and his sons were ordained 
to the priesthood, God instructed Moses to 
" anoint them and consecrate them and sane- 



ANOINTING AND CONSECRATION. 77 

tify them," that they might minister unto Him 
(Ex. xxviii: 41), and we shall find that sanc- 
tification may be made ours, as well as the 
anointing and consecration. 

Following the footsteps of our blessecl 
Master, we are to present ourselves " a living 
sacrifice;' and St. Peter says, " Ye, also, as 
lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, a 
holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, 
acceptable to God by Jesus Christ." 

After once making an entire consecration 
of our souls and bodies, there is one truth to 
be borne in mind, which, though a solemn one, 
is full of the sweetest comfort. We are hence- 
forth and forever the Lord's, and under no 
pretext, whatever, shall we have a right to 
take back the gift which we have voluntarily 
laid upon the Altar. 

Satan will try to persuade us that the Lord 
has not accepted us, or that we have not 
really given ourselves, but we must give all 
such dangerous suggestions to our Lord, and 
ask Him to conquer them for us. 

" Every devoted thing is most holy unto the 
Lord * * * he shall not search whether it be 



78 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

good or bad, neither shall he change it." — Lev. 
xxvii : 33. We need not search our hearts to 
see whether they are worthy or unworthy of 
God's acceptance, for only through our 
Saviour are we " justified by faith," and only 
by His Spirit can we be made holy. 

Once presented unto Him we are his for- 
ever, and "the Altar sanctifieth the gift." 

u The Lord, the everlasting God, 
Is our defence and Rock ; 
The saving health, the saving strength, 
Of His anointed flock." 



THE USE OF MEDICINE. 79 

CHAPTER VI. 

THE USE OF MEDICINE. 

A dear friend who is beginning to recog- 
nize her precious privilege of trusting the 
Lord for all her needs r wrote me not long 
ago : " It is a great thing to trust God for 
everything, and still I am growing more and 
more to feel that not to trust Him is presump- 
tion." In this light it must appear to every 
fully consecrated child of God,, who has 
learned by faith, His blessed will for us. 

But how different are the opinions of those 
who are not yet acquainted with their Lord's 
sweet will, and who think it is almost pre- 
sumption to claim His promises, especially 
this promised healing of the body. They 
feel and say that they would not dare ask to 
be healed in answer to prayer, because they 
must be submissive and bear their sickness 
patiently. 

Still these same persons would doubtless 
have no scruples in seeking for remedies with 



8o THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

which to prolong life or even effect a cure, 
and if raised from their beds of sickness, 
would have no question about its having been 
best for them to recover. Doubtless, all of 
us have been as inconsistent as this at some 
time in our lives, even if we have since been 
shown our errors, and brought beyond such 
a narrow range of vision. If we have not 
thought it wrong to seek for medicines to 
deliver us from the bondage of sickness, why- 
should we fear to be cured by the " prayer of 
faith," that more perfect healing institution 
made ours by Christ's atonement ? 

But some will ask, " How do I know that it 
is not my time to die ? " To these I would 
say, would you fear to take medicine lest it 
might be your time to die ? You would not 
be afraid of the medicine's curing you, if God 
willed you to die, neither need you fear that 
you will not die at the right time if ^ou obey 
God's instructions and have the "prayer of 
faith " offered for you. With the prayer, the 
anointing, and the consecration, would come 
upon your soul greater power of the Spirit 
than you had ever known before, and He 



THE USE OF MEDICINE. 8 1 

would reveal to you if God's will concerning 
your body was any different from that in His 
revealed word. " Likewise the Spirit also 
helpeth our infirmities ; for we know not what 
we should pray for as we ought; but the 
Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with 
groanings which cannot be uttered. And He 
that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the 
mind of the Spirit, because He maketh inter- 
cession for the saints according to the will of 
God'' Our duty is to obey God's commands, 
and then trustfully leave the result with*Him. 

We most of us know, from a sad experience, 
that medicine has been as inadequate to meet 
the needs of our suffering bodies, as the moral 
law has been insufficient to heal and cleanse 
our souls. Medicine is a most imperfect in- 
stitution, as all remedial influences outside of 
Christ, are, of necessity, imperfect, because 
belonging to this sin-stricken world. " Every 
good gift and every perfect gift is from above, 
and cometh down from the Father of lights, 
with whom is no variableness, neither shadow 
of turning." 

Under the new dispensation, Christ, the 



82 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

" Great Physician of the soul, has promised 
to be the Physician of the body also, upon the 
same condition, that of faith. As there is a 
vast difference between the child of God and 
the unbeliever, so I cannot but think that our 
loving Father would have all of us who have 
consecrated ourselves as " holy unto the 
Lord," find our physical, as well as spiritual, 
healing by faith in Christ. The lessons by 
which we are withdrawn further and further 
from the world, and from dependence on 
human help, teach us to rely more on our 
Saviour; and is it not a very precious thought, 
that by the direct influence of the Holy Spirit, 
we may be healed, renewed and energized in 
body as in soul ? 

We are to be a separate and peculiar people, 
" a holy people unto the Lord," and as God 
instituted for Israel of old, laws and privileges 
which other nations did not enjoy, so it is 
with His consecrated children now. When- 
ever the children of Israel despised, and failed 
to avail themselves of their peculiar privileges, 
they were brought into affliction. Let us ex- 
amine ourselves, lest we, through unbelief, 



* THE USE OF MEDICINE. 83 

reject our special blessings, and so grieve our 
Heavenly Father. 

" There is life for a look at the crucified One." 

We have only to look at Him to have the 
bite of the fiery serpent healed, whether the 
effect of its venom sin, is in our hearts, or on 
our bodies. 

But as little as medicine has been able to 
benefit us, it is strange how some of us cling 
to it, unwilling to give it up even after the 
" prayer of faith " has been offered for us. 
While it may not be a sin of itself to use 
medicine when we are looking to the Lord 
for healing, it often encourages the sin of 
unbelief, and is, in most cases, a decided 
hindrance to the complete cure which our 
Physician would perform, were we willing to 
trust Him fully. 

Holding on to the medicine certainly im- 
plies a lack of faith, and by a careful and 
truthful examination of the motives which 
lead any one to use it, after prayer has been 
offered, we shall see that most of them pro- 
ceed from the sin of unbelief. Are there not 



84 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

many who are dimly conscious of a feeling 
that if they gave up the medicine, the Lord 
might fail to keep His promise ? It is indeed 
a sad thing if we are afraid that He, Who 
notes each tiny sparrow, will fail to take note 
of us! 

Do they not, in their unbelief, desire to use 
at least some simple medicine, that they may 
not be very much worse off if God's word 
should fail? If Jehovah's faithfulness could 
fail, in whom can we trust ? 

We are all apt to invent names and excuses 
for our unbelief, but if we delude ourselves, 
we cannot deceive God. We must overcome 
these subtle temptations by declaring that our 
Strong Helper cannot fail, and that, if He 
does, we are ready to let all else fail with 
Him ! Satan flees before a conquering trust 
like that. 

In 2 Chron. xvi : 12, we read: "And Asa 
in the thirty and ninth year of his reign was 
diseased in his feet, until his disease was ex- 
ceeding great : yet in his disease he sought 
not to the Lord, but to the physicians. 
And Asa slept with his fathers." This is a 



THE USE OF MEDICINE. 85 

remarkable passage, and shows that the Lord 
makes a great distinction between our trust- 
ing in Himself, and in man whom He has 
created. 

There is danger in putting too much con- 
fidence in our fellow-beings, for by so doing 
we look away from God, and forget to rely 
on Him. With sad ignorance and foolish- 
ness, we attribute to earthly helpers much of 
the power which belongs alone to our Creator, 
and especially do we see this true when we 
notice the homage paid to skill in the med- 
ical profession. I believe that some of our 
most painful lessons are necessary, because 
we stubbornly refuse to recognize God's over- 
ruling providence in our daily lives. 

a Thus saith the Lord, Cursed be the man 
that trusteth in man and maketh flesh his 
arm, and whose heart departeth from the 
Lord." — Jer. xvii : 5. 

But what could be more comforting and 
assuring than the passages following : " Blessed 
is the man that trusteth in the Lord and 
whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as 
a tree planted by the waters and that 



86 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

spreadeth out her roots by the river, and 
shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf 
shall be green, and shall not be careful in 
the year of drought, neither shall cease from 
yielding fruit." — Jer. xvii : 7, 8. Do you 
think it could be possible for us to trust in 
the Lord too much ? Trusting in Him, all 
our needs shall be supplied from an inex- 
haustible source, even the " fountain of living 
waters." Others fail because they trust only 
to natural resources, but if we trust in the one 
Source of all resources, we " shall not be care- 
ful in the year of droughty neither shall cease 
from yielding fruit." "My God shall supply 
all your need, according to His riches in 
glory, by Christ Jesus." 

As I was reading the seventh chapter of 
Judges, I noticed a marked lesson conveyed 
in the second verse : " And the Lord said 
unto Gideon, The people that are with thee 
are too many for Me to give the Midianites 
into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves 
against Me, saying, mine own hand hath 
saved me." 

The folly and pride of human nature is 
still in danger of vaunting itself against God, 



THE USE OF MEDICINE. 87 

and we often forget to say with sincere hearts, 
si Thine is the kingdom, the power and the 
glory." Our Lord would have us depend so 
entirely on Himself, that all who witness His 
mighty works, cannot fail of ascribing our 
deliverance to Him, Who alone is able to 
fight our battles for us. 

When we give up all else, and look only to 
His power, our Physician can cure us speedily 
because we do not hinder His work by 
dependence on the "wisdom of this world," 
which is "foolishness with God." — i Cor. 
iii : 19. 

The Lord refused to give Israel the victory 
over the Midianites until He had deprived 
them of occasion to glory, except in the 
power of the Lord. " There returned of the 
people twenty and two thousand, and there 
remained ten thousand," and, even then, "the 
Lord said unto Gideon, The people are yet 
too many." 

Of those ten thousand remaining, only 
three hundred were chosen, into whose hands 
the Lord would deliver the Midianites. 

And so we who are trusting to God to 
gain for us a victory, which we are assured, 



55 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

from repeated failures, no human power could 
gain for us, shall find that He will not con- 
quer our enemies for us, until we have relin- 
quished our hold on every earthly prop, 
which might cause us to " vaunt " ourselves 
against the Lord. 

Those who have become so accustomed to 
vaking medicine, and especially to the use of 
opiates, that it seems impossible, humanly 
speaking, to live without them, and who are 
sighing under the bondage, will read the 
following accounts of healing in this chapter, 
with renewed hopes of deliverance. 

Norwich, Conn., November 2jd y 1879. 
Dear Christian Friends: 

I want to tell you what the Lord has done 
for my household. For over twenty years 
my wife was addicted to the use of laudanum, 
that had been prescribed by a physician, and 
she thought she could not do without it. I 
taxed my own ingenuity, to its utmost extent, 
to contrive . how the habit might be broken ; 
but all to no avail. The doctors tried sub- 
stitutes with the same result. In 1873, in 



THE USE OF MEDICINE. 89 

the month of July, I went to a camp-meet- 
ing at Sea Cliff, L. I. 

On Tuesday, the president of the meeting, 
Rev. J. S. Inskip, said : " This morning we 
will have a faith meeting." A large number 
spoke of special answers to prayer ; the presi- 
dent then said : " Now, we want to see if 
this God, Whom we worship here to-day, does 
answer prayer. All of you who have petitions 
you would like to have granted, write them, 
and sign your names and places of residence, 
and send them up to the stand. We will rea«d 
them, withholding the name. We will base 
these petitions on the promises that have been 
read." 

I, with some four hundred others, sent up 
our petitions. I wrote : " For a wife who is 
addicted to the use of opiates ; that the habit 
may be broken, and she soundly converted." 
I sent the petition to the stand, pledging my- 
self to pray every day of my life for these 
petitions. The next February my wife was 
taken sick. She had been using opiates a 
great deal. We called our family doctor and 
he prescribed for her. On this day, as we 



90 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

came out of the room where she was ill, the 
bottle of laudanum was on the table by the 
door. The doctor took the bottle in his hand 
and brought it out, saying, "I hope to God 
she will never ask for that again/' 

And she never has, nor has she ever seen it, 
to my knowledge, for I have it locked up. 
The doctors say they cannot account for it, 
and I do not attempt to, otherwise than as 
God has answered prayer. 

I am very truly yours in faith, 

Titus Carrier. 

Hinsdale, Mass., July 4th, 1880. 
Miss Judd : 

You wished me to make a statement of my 
long illness, and of my wonderful cure. I 
was taken sick in 1875. I had not been well 
all winter, but kept around the house until 
March, when a doctor was called. Two days 
after he came to see me I was unable to sit up 
any, on account of the pain in my back. I 
had used a number of blisters which gave me 
some relief. I grew worse, and three weeks 
after the doctor was first called, he wished to 



THE USE OF MEDICINE. 91 

-consult with another physician. The disease 
was pronounced inflammation of the kidneys. 
All kinds of medicine were tried. I soon got 
so I could keep nothing on my stomach, and 
would have spells of vomiting, every few mo- 
ments, for days. All I could take was ice. 
My head pained me fearfully ; was obliged to 
keep a bag of ice on it day and night. 
Leeches were tried on my head and they gave 
some relief. Doctors from other towns were 
called ; they all said our physician was doing 
all that could be done. I was in such pain, 
and could take no medicine in my stomach, 
so the doctor began to inject morphine into 
my veins. I seemed to gain some then ; still 
my back was very bad and I could not sit up 
any. The doctor carried me from one bed to 
another. I had used over fifty blisters. Some 
of the time I would be more comfortable, and 
the doctor would think I would be able to sit 
up a little. A reclining chair was bought 
and he put me in it a few times, but it made 
me worse. 

Mr. and Mrs. Mix came to see me the 
twenty-sixth of November, 1879. I was then 



92 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

very helpless, could eat but very little, was 
using morphine all the time. After prayer for 
my healing I was enabled to rise up in bed, 
and, with a little assistance from Mrs. Mix, 
walked a few feet to a chair ; in about half an 
hour I walked back to the bed alone. I had 
been in the habit of having morphine injected 
five or six times in twenty-four hours, and the 
doctor said it would kill me to leave it off. 
But in answer to the " prayer of faith " I was 
enabled to do without it entirely. I am quite 
strong, now ; can walk half a mile to church 
and back. I feel that I cannot thank the 
Lord enough for what He has done for me. 
Yours in faith, 

Mary E. Mack. 



BELIEVING GOD S WORD. 93 

CHAPTER VII. 

BELIEVING GOD'S WORD. 

When we have fulfiled, as far as possible, 
the command given in the fourteenth verse of 
the fifth chapter of James, we must believe 
that, according to the Lord's promise, our 
disease is rebuked, and we are being made 
whole. 

The great point to remember just here is 
that God's word is true and we must believe 
it in spite of every apparent contradiction. 
These contradictions, if they occur, can be 
only seeming ones, for God is always faithful ; 
but the devil, who is the father of lies, often 
deceives us into believing feelings and cir- 
cumstances instead of God's word. 

We have a lesson about this in Christ's 
healing of the nobleman's son. When this 
nobleman " heard that Jesus was come out of 
Judea into Galilee, he went unto Him and 
besought Him that He would come down and 
heal his son, for he was at the point of death. 



94 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

" Then said Jesus unto him, Except ye see signs 
and wonders ye will not believe/' 

This is apt to be the case with us. When 
prayer is offered for our healing we are un- 
willing to believe, unless we feel some wonder- 
ful power, or extraordinary sensation. That 
such sensations are often experienced in con- 
nection with faith-healing we admit, but many 
times they are not, and we are required to 
believe God's word before we see " signs and 
wond ers. " " There are diversities of operations, 
but it is the same God which worketh all in 
all."— i Cor. xii: 6. 

It is for us to believe God's word, without 
deeming it needful to look to anything else 
for confirmation of that word. God's word 
confirms itself. 

This nobleman, feeling the urgency of the 
case, and realizing that his son was near 
death, immediately renewed his pleading : 
"Sir, come down ere my child die." The 
faith which dared to press its cause so earn- 
estly and yet so humbly, was rewarded by the 
answer, " Go thy way; thy son liveth." The 
father had now simply to believe Christ's 



BELIEVING GOD S WORD. 95 

word ; there was nothing else to which he 
could cling, for he could not immediately see 
his son, to remark whether his condition was 
really bettered or not ; no visible means had 
been employed for his restoration ; the father 
must believe that his son was recovering be- 
cause Jesus had spoken ; and His word was 
true. 

What a lesson is this to us ! We must be- 
lieve that Christ fulfils His promises just as 
soon as we claim them in His name, even 
before we can see any earthly circumstances 
to warrant us in our belief. So many of us 
have yet to learn, how different is faith from 
sight. 

We read, " And the man believed the word 
that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went 
his way." Would not some of us have 
doubted the cure, until we met the servant 
who bore the glad tidings of his recovery? 
So sad, but true, it is, that we would receive 
the witness of our fellow-beings, and not that 
of our Creator. 

One great step toward gaining the victory 
is to believe that we have the blessing for 



$6 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

which we pray ; not that we shall have it at 
some indefinite, future time, but that it belongs 
to us just as soon as we have fulfilled the con- 
dition, and asked for it in Jesus' name. 
Christ said : " What things soever ye desire 
when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and 
ye shall have them." — St. Mark xi : 24. 

What would be the state of our mind if we 
believed that the things we asked for were 
really ours ? We should not certainly think 
it necessary to ask for them over and over 
again ; but we should immediately drop all 
anxiety about the matter, and be filled with 
thanksgiving. Our attitude of pleading would 
be changed to one of sure expectation, and 
we would wait joyfully for the gift which we 
knew had already been bestowed upon us. 
We can vanquish Satan by saying, " What I 
desire is mine according to God's promise, 
even if I do not yet see that I have it. I be- 
lieve God's word, not circumstances, and I 
shall soon see that the blessing is -mine, by 
having it really in possession. " 

If an earthly friend told us we might have 
some object just for the asking, we should 



BELIEVING GODS WORD. 97 

have no doubt that it was ours, even before 
we had finished making the request. Whether 
or not it was immediately placed in our hands, 
we should believe it to be ours, and should 
make our calculations the same as if it were 
within our grasp. 

If we set out with the idea that we cannot 
believe God's word is fulfiled in us, unless 
our feelings immediately confirm it, we shall 
be "like a wave of the sea, driven with the 
wind and tossed," and the apostle says, "let 
not that man think that he shall receive any- 
thing of the Lord/' — Jas. i : 6, 7. 

I was talking to an invalid about this, not 
long ago, and she saw instantly how Satan had 
been deceiving her. "I see ! " she exclaimed; 
" I did not wait for my feelings to believe that 
Jesus saved me from my sins, but I have been 
waiting for my feelings before I would believe 
that He answered my prayers, and was curing 
me of sickness. When people have asked how 
I was, I would tell them I was no better, and 
so I have been making God a liar. I thank 
Him for this light ! " 

We are not, of course, to say that we feel 



gS THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

better, unless we do, but we may state the fact 
that we are being made whole, on the author- 
ity of God's word. His word is sure, and if 
we determine to rely on that, and that alone, 
our position is secure, and no wind of adverse 
circumstance can cause us to waver. 

Another wonderful help to this life of faith, 
is to believe that every petition we offej in 
Christ's name will be heard and answered. 
Trust to God's time and God's way of answer- 
ing, but believe that we already have the 
answer to the faintest prayer uttered in that 
dear name. Consider each as an important 
document, because bearing that name of 
power, and lay them all, by an act of faith, in 
God's keeping, with the surety that He will 
not forget them, if we, with our short memo- 
ries, do ; and He will bring to our mind each 
prayer, with its fulfilment, at the right time. 
This is such a blessed way ; then we shall 
have no anxiety about any of our prayers, for 
we shall know that every one is regarded and 
remembered by the Father, because He will 
not pass by the name of His dearly loved 
Son. 



BELIEVING GOD S WORD. 99 

I remember once making a remark to a 
dear friend, which, because it involved some- 
thing of a compliment to herself, she laugh- 
ingly refused to credit. Upon my asking, 
half reproachfully, if she could not trust my 
word, she gave me an answer which has since 
taught me a lesson in regard to faith. "Yes," 
she said, "I do believe you, and whenever you 
say anything, I will believe every word of it, 
even if it isn't so ! " 

Our faith in God must be so steadfast that 
even if the evidence of all our senses should 
deny His word, we must consider them as 
deceiving us, and still continue to uphold His 
faithfulness. Such faith as that never fails to 
remove, sooner or later, the mountain of 
difficulty or doubt. It is too true that we 
often place such confidence in our poor, weak 
fellow-creatures, and yet refuse to have faith 
.in God. When we have faith in dear earthly 
friends, we will believe nothing contrary to 
their word, even if there are many circum- 
stances against them. Beloved, there is only 
One whose word never fails ; let us repose 
such trust in Him, and "nothing shall be 
impossible " unto us. 



IOO THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

There is a simple test which, in jnany cases, 
we may apply to our conduct, which will 
speedily convince us whether or not we are 
really believing that our prayers are answered, 
and that is, to act out our faith. Whatever 
we really believe, we are ready to act in 
accordance with. I have heard, through good 
authority, of a lady who was obliged for many 
years to use crutches, because one foot was 
so disabled that she could not step upon it. 
One Sunday morning, as she was going slowly 
and painfully to church, the promises came 
forcibly to her mind, and she was impressed 
to pray for the healing of her foot. Imme- 
diately the thought came to her, " If I really 
believe that God has answered my prayer, my 
foot is well, and I can walk upon it as upon 
the other." She pressed it firmly to the 
ground, in spite of the most crushing pain, 
and tried to walk rapidly along without the 
aid of her crutches. Paying no regard to the 
pain, which, for a few moments, was intense, 
she said constantly, " I am healed, according 
to God's promise/' Before she reached the 
church, her foot ceased paining her, and she 
realized that it was as whole as the other. 



BELIEVING GODS WORD. IOI 

This principle of faith-healing is shown in 
the account of the cleansing of the ten lepers. 
Think of the faith they were required to 
exercise in order to obey Christ's command, 
"Go shew yourselves unto the priests." This, 
they knew, it would be of no use to do unless 
they were cleansed before the searching ex- 
amination of the priests took place, but relying 
on Christ's power and mercy, they went as He 
had commanded. Unbelief would have pre- 
vented them from even starting until they saw 
that the cleansing had been accomplished, but 
they accepted the blessing in faith, acting 
faith, and it was soon given them in reality. 
" For it came to pass that as they went they 
were cleansed." 

I will relate an instance which a corres- 
pondent of mine wrote me not long ago. She 
says: "Last Sunday morning I was asked 
whether I were going to church. Not feeling, 
as I thought, able, I answered, tl No." Then 
one who is not a Christian, said, " Is it not 
the Christian's duty to sacrifice his feelings ? " 
I simply said " Yes/' and made up my mind to 
go. I knew I could not in my own strength. 



102 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

As the church is a long distance from our 
home, I usually went in a buggy with a high 
back to it, but this time was compelled to ride 
in one without any back, and the road was 
very rough. As I went down the front steps 
I felt so weak that I feared I should have to 
go back, but I asked the Lord continually to 
help me. While at church I felt that I was 
resting; returned home, and felt much better 
for having gone. I made the effort and left 
the result with God. All glory be to His 
name for the strength He gave me ! " 

Should increased suffering come to us, after 
prayer has been offered for our healing, we 
must believe that it is because of the healing 
power which is making us whole. 

It will give us comfort to consider the 
experience of the lunatic whom Christ healed. 
Immediately after Jesus commanded the devil 
to come out of the child, we read that "the 
spirit cried and rent him sore, and came out 
of him, and he was as one dead, insomuch 
that many said, he is dead." 

This shows, that in some cases, the healing 
in answer to prayer may not be apparent at 



BELIEVING GOD S WORD. 103 

once. The spirit of disease may, in its exit 
from our tormented bodies, u rend us sore/' 
and prostrate us more than ever for a time. 
But shall this make us believe for a moment 
that God is failing to keep His word ? as if 
that word which upholds the universe could 
fail ! Let us be ready even to rejoice if 
increased pain and weakness are ours after 
prayer has been offered, feeling sure that it is 
the departing struggle of the disease which 
Jesus has rebuked. 

There is one point which it is necessary to 
have positively settled when we first seek our 
Great Physician for healing, and that is how 
long we intend to trust Him. If we go ex- 
perimentally, thinking to confide ourselves to 
His care for a limited time, or until we see 
whether or not we receive the desired blessing, 
we are encouraging unbelief, and placing our- 
selves in a position to receive constant assaults 
from the enemy. But if we give our souls and 
bodies into Christ's loving keeping, and decide 
once for all to leave them there; if we deter- 
mine that by His grace nothing shall shake 
our confidence in Him, who is our Strong 



104 THE PRAYER OF FAITH* 

Tower, then our faith will be steady and 
victorious. 

We shall then have no anxiety as to the 
result, for knowing that our all-wise Physician 
cannot make mistakes, our conquering belief 
in Him will justify all His providences, how- 
ever mysterious, Satan may, at times, make 
them appear to us. We must be willing to 
stake our own reputation for truth, upon God's 
faithfulness, even willing to be found a liar to 
prove His truth. "Yea, let God be true and 
every man a liar, as it is written, That Thou 
mightest be justified in Thy sayings, and 
mierhtest overcome when Thou art judged." — 
Romans iii : 3 But, oh, remember ! that no 
one ever trusted in Him and was confounded. 

The Lord says, " They shall not be ashamed 
that wait for me." — Isaiah xlix : 23. 

" Faith's beacon light, 

Like star at night, 
Pours forth its Heavenly rays ; 

Bids darkness flee, 

Illumes life's sea, 
And justifies God's ways." 



GLORIFYING GOD. 105 

CHAPTER VIII. 

GLORIFYING GOD. 

We must beware lest we lose the blessing 
after it is once ours, by fearing to proclaim 
the victory until the battle is more fully won. 
" I will wait and see if it is really going to 
last, before I tell others what God has done 
for me," says unbelief, and because some of 
us yield to this temptation of Satan, we lose 
what we have gained. 

Meet the tempter with the unanswerable 
truth that God cannot fail, and what He has 
begun He will finish. We say, perhaps, that 
we know God cannot fail, but our faith might. 
Resolve that by His grace it must not, it shall 
not fail. We shall be strengthening our faith, 
and getting beyond the possibility of a defeat, 
if we proclaim God's power and mercy, and 
the mighty works we are trusting Him to 
accomplish. 

If we allow our unbelief to prevent God's 
gracious work from going on after we have 



106 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

called Him as our Physician, we are dishonor- 
ing His holy name ; we are not merely letting 
go of the blessing we desire, but we are giving 
occasion to the Lord's enemies to say that He 
is not able to perform that which He has 
promised. We should remember about cer- 
tain people we read of in the Bible, who were 
so unbelieving, that Jesus could do no mighty 
work among them. We must desire, above 
all else, that God shall be glorified in us*, and 
that His faithfulness shall be declared to all 
the world. 

A friend wrote me in a recent letter: U I 
know, many times, unbelief, or failing to ac- 
knowledge blessings already received (for 
instance, encouragement in prayer, or partial 
alleviation of pain or distress), often hinders 
our receiving the great blessings the Lord has 
for us. If we only have perfect obedience, 
and perfect faith, or confidence, there is no 
failure. We must trust our blessed Saviour 
fully." 

Doubt is fatal to faith. Jesus says, " Who- 
soever * * * shall not doubt in his heart, but 
shall believe that those things which he saith, 



GLORIFYING GOD. 107 

shall come to pass, he shall have whatsoever 
he saith ." And again, "Verily, I say unto 
you, if ye have faith and doubt ?iot, ye shall 
not only do this which is done to the fig tree, 
* * * * all things whatsoever ye ask in 
prayer, believing, ye shall receive. ,, 

When we have made every effort to believe, 
and have acted out our faith as far as possible, 
it is sometimes the dear Lord's will not to 
give us, at once, the blessings which we know 
we have claimed by faith. But we must not 
let anything make us doubt, for any waiting 
on His part, to give us according to our faith, 
is productive of the highest good. He alone 
knows how precious is the trial of our faith, 
" being much more precious than of gold that 
perisheth." But notice, it is not the trying 
of our unbelief, but the trying of our faith 
which "worketh patience," and if our faith 
dissolves itself in doubts, there will be no 
precious metal to shine the clearer from the 
fire. 

Let me say one word about Satan's decep- 
tions in regard to doubting We must re- 
member that temptations to doubt are not sin, 



108 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

unless we yield to them; but if we do not 
turn instantly from the enemy's first suggestion 
to doubt, it is almost as fatal as giving up to 
him at once. The most he wants is that we 
shall argue with him, and then, of course, he 
will drag us into mires and quicksands. We 
must remain on the solid Rock. God will 
conquer all temptations if we take them at 
once to Him, and confess how powerless we 
are, of ourselves, to subdue the enemy. "With 
us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight 
our battles. " 

Even if we feel that we are " beginning to 
sink," as did Peter, we have only to utter one 
cry for help, and our Lord is at our side. 
Peter's prayer was very short ; only the words, 
''Lord, save me ! " but help was near him, and 
it is always near to us, if we will ask for it. 
"And immediately Jesus stretched forth His 
hand, and caught him and said unto him, 
O, thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou 
doubt ? " 

In that strong, sure upholding, well might 
Peter's faith revive ; and oh, thank the Lord ! 
He is just as ready to hold each one of us 



GLORIFYING GOD. 109 

to-day. " Thou hast a mighty arm*: strong is 
Thy hand, and high is Thy right hand." 

" I am so weak, dear Lord, I cannot stand 
One moment without Thee ; 
• But oh, the tenderness of Thine enfolding ! 
And oh, the faithfulness of Thine upholding ! 
And oh, the strength of Thy right hand- 
That strength is enough for me." 

In close connection with doubt, there is 
ingratitude to guard against. There was only 
one of the ten lepers that Jesus healed, who 
turned back to glorify God, "and he was a 
Samaritan." This last fact is particularly re- 
corded, because the people of Samaria were 
considered opposers of the true religion. As 
a learned commentator expresses it, " In the 
eyes of a Jew, the imputation of being a 
Samaritan was the most reproachful possible. 
The term included everything that was odious 
and despicable. " That this "stranger," as 
Jesus, with mildness and benignity, termed 
him, should turn back to worship his Saviour, 
and render thanks for the great blessing just 
received, while his companions, who were prob- 
ably veritable descendants of Israel, went heed- 
lessly on their way, is indeed a matter of remark. 



IIO THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

If our conduct is similar to that of the un- 
grateful nine, is it not because our affections 
are centered more on some earthly blessing 
than on the Divine Giver, arid in our delight 
over some earthly gift, we set at naught the 
one "Pearl of great price"? And when pro- 
fessing Christians are remiss in what should 
be their most pleasurable of duties, that of 
glorifying God "with a loud voice," so that 
those outside of the fold may hear of His 
mercies, God will often raise up those who 
have been "strangers" to the true Israel, to 
sound praises to His faithfulness. 

A truly consecrated heart will desire God's 
glory above everything else, an-d will rejoice 
in its Saviour far more than in any of His 
gifts, precious as they may be. 

" For if thou not to Him aspire, 

But to His gifts alone, 
Not love, but covetous desire, 

Has brought thee to His throne. 
While such thy prayer, it climbs above 

In vain, — the golden key 
Of God's rich treasure house of love 

Thine own will never be." 



GLORIFYING GOD. Ill 

When the cleansed leper returned to give 
glory to Jesus, he received a second blessing, 
which his companions had forfeited by their 
ingratitude. " And He said unto him, Arise, 
go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole. " 
He had recognized Jesus as his Redeemer, 
and his faith in Him had made him whole in 
soul as well as in body. 

God grant, my dear friends, that we shall 
not refuse to give glory to God's name, but 
that we may return to Him at once with 
joyful praises, and realize that we are healed, 
spiritually as well as physically, when we hear 
His sweet, assuring voice, " Arise, go thy way : 
thy faith hath made thee whole." And will 
not our way then, on which He bids us go, be 
a clear way and a blessed way? He will 
make every step of it plain to us, and we shall 
travel it with rejoicing, for the Lord "pre- 
serveth the way of His saints." 



112 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

CHAPTER IX. 

VICTORY THROUGH CHRIST. 

In this chapter is given the experience of a 
dear sister, who has been brought triumphantly 
through the conflict, by the conquering might 
of her Lord; and before my dear readers 
listen to the recital of her long illness and 
wonderful deliverance, I believe that they will 
be interested in a sweet little poem, which 
she composed when she had no thought of 
being freed from her suffering, except by 
death. To all those who are still helpless, 
these little verses will be a song attuned to 
their own heart-longings. 

LOST, THE SOUND OF FOOTSTEPS. 
BY ALICE M. BALL. 

Lost, the sound of footsteps — my own footsteps ; just 

once more 
Do I long to hear the music of my feet upon the floor ; 
Dream I of the days, now vanished, when my lips first 

learned to talk, 
Of the mother's love that fondly taught a little child to 

walk : 



VICTORY THROUGH CHRIST. II3 

In the silence that surrounds me, tired of silence, tired 

of pain, 
Do I long for hands to guide me, till I've learned to 

walk again. 

Lost, the sound of footsteps ; how the days have come 
and gone, 

And my steps, forever silenced, wake no echo in our 
home. 

Music floats about me, sweetly wafted on the air, 

And the hum of merry voices sounds about me every- 
where, 

While I fondly long for music, that can be mine never- 
more — 

Just the music of my footsteps — my own footsteps on 
the floor. 

Lost, the sound of footsteps ; and I wait, day after day, 
In the midst of this long silence, where the Master bids 

me stay, 
And dream of spacious meadows, where my child feet 

used to roam ; 
Of the foot-prints left so often on the graveled walks 

at home. 
Does the Father know how restless our weak human 

feet may grow, 
And does He guide them just as safely, when they lie 

in shadows so ? 



114 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

Lost, the sound of footsteps ; when the soul's work here 

is done, 
When the gates of Heaven are opened, and our Father 

bids me come 
JFrom this silence so unbroken by the tread of human 

feet, 
Over where immortal footsteps echo on the golden 

street, 
Then, till then, dear Father, teach me, that through all 

these fearful depths, 
In the silence that surrounds me, Thou art guiding still 

my steps ; m 

And when life for me is over, even in Heaven, may I 

once more 
Hear again the sound of footsteps, my own footsteps 

on the floor ? 

Pittsfield, Mass., 
Valley Farm, June 22d t 1880. 

My Dear Carrie : 

I consider it a privilege to give, what you 
have asked, the story of my release from 
bondage in answer to the "prayer of faith"; 
bondage that was dark, deep and mysterious, 
and of eighteen years duration. Two months 
previous to my twelfth birthday, I was taken 
sick at school, with what shortly proved to be 
an attack of measles. I was not dangerously 



VICTORY THROUGH CHRIST. 115 

ill, and as soon as could be expected, I was 
about the house, apparently my former healthy, 
happy self. But the first ride I attempted 
after the illness, brought on a sort of nervous 
spasm, of short duration, but sufficiently dif- 
ferent from anything I had ever experienced 
before, to prove that all was not well. For 
six months I was able to take long walks, eat 
and sleep well, but steadily creeping upon me 
I felt those strange inexplicable nervous feel- 
ings, that changed life, and my desires con- 
cerning it. During the following two years I 
had severe sick spells, from which I would 
rally, after awhile, with strong holds upon 
hope, but, at length, so thoroughly had disease 
overpowered me, I was obliged to succumb, 
and awful suffering and depression it was my 
lot to bear. Shortly after my removal here, 
began a contest between sickness and health, 
life and death, which it is neither pleasant, 
nor profitable, to attempt to describe. 

What I have suffered, hoped, and feared, it 
is beyond my power to tell. Many physicians 
have attended my case, but although, in some 
instances, temporary relief has been obtained, 



Il6 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

nothing permanent has been granted, except 
the knowledge that, in my case, " vain is the 
help of man." 

After the summer of 1867 I was confined 
wholly to the house, and mostly to my bed, 
being, very frequently, for days at a time, 
utterly unable to lift my head from the pillow, 
or be moved the least particle without agony. 
During the summer of 1868, under the careful 
treatment of Dr. A. M. Smith, of this city, I 
was much relieved of spinal and nervous 
trouble, and shall never cease thanking God 
for timely aid afforded ; for several subsequent 
years, under this physician's care, had more 
comfortable times allotted me than I had 
known for a long period of time before, but a 
sufferer I was still, and must have remained, 
had not the dear Master graciously interposed 
in my behalf. 

I was unable to walk or stand one moment 
alone upon my feet, a terrible dizziness, and 
pressure in the heart, attending every attempt 
of this kind. The cords of my lower limbs 
were contracted. For sixteen years I had not 
been able to lie an instant upon my left side ; 



VICTORY THROUGH CHRIST. 117 

could take but small quantities of food, and 
often, for weeks at a time, was unable to take 
the least nourishment without great increase 
of pain. In one of your letters you speak of 
what you suffered from " exaltation of sensi- 
bility." How much that means to me ! Dur- 
ing seasons of great prostration I have lain, 
for hours at a time, in that condition that had 
a person entered my room, had there been 
any unusual noise (how I used to pray that 
nothing of the kind might occur), I do not 
know how I could have endured it. My dear 
mother used to sit in the room adjoining mine, 
doing all in her power to hinder increase of 
excitement. I have endured the most excru- 
ciating pain, and have suffered about as much, 
it seems to me, as poor humanity could endure. 

How zealously I strove to overcome disease, 
and regain my health, willing to submit to the 
most severe experiments suggested by physi- 
cians, if offered thereby any hope of relief, 
many can testify. 

Last July, and once more in September, 
prayer was offered for me by Dr. Charles Cul- 
lis, of Boston, Mass. I was blessed spiritually, 



Il8 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

but was not yet prepared to take hold upon the 
promises, and claim a physical cure. About 
this time I was led to plead for a consecrated 
heart, and began to taste the blessedness of 
giving myself wholly away to God ; began to 
ask, and receive, answers to my prayers m so 
remarkable a manner, that I could doubt no 
longer the willingness of Jehovah to speak to 
the children of men. 

At some future time, I want to give you 
the particulars concerning special answers to 
prayer in a time of great wonderment and 
depression in regard to financial embarrass- 
ments. 

Very soon reports were brought me con- 
cerning the great faith of some colored people 
of Wolcottville, Conn, (your own case, my 
dear Carrie, being prominent among those 
that helped increase my courage), and as 
these good people were soon expecting to 
visit Pittsheld, I was advised to see them. 
But alas ! like Naaman, I questioned whether 
the waters of Israel were any better than 
those of Pharphar and Abana ;■ why my own 
prayers, or those of my Christian neighbors, 



VICTORY THROUGH CHRIST. 119 

might not avail as much as the prayers of 
Mrs. Mix. I think one of the most important 
truths which I have been called to learn, since 
coming to this life of faith, is, that of all His 
children the Lord demands obedience. 

Looking unto Him, prayerfully, I was led 
to Mrs. Mix. On the second of November 
she came to me, prayed with me — friends in 
various parts of the house uniting in prayer 
for me at the same time — and without assist- 
ance from any human agency, / arose and 
walked ; no dizziness seized me, nor was 
there any inclination to fall. I had said in 
the morning that if, in this life, I was ever able 
to walk to mother's kitchen and, coming 
through certain rooms, back to my bed, I 
would say I was healed. 

Before dark, on that long to be remembered 
Sunday, I accomplished this feat easily, and 
mother and daughter praised God from 
fervent hearts. Cords so long contracted 
straightened in one night. I could now take 
food regularly without distress, and the word 
of the Master came to me with power : " Wait 
on the Lord : be of good courage, and He 



120 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say, on 
the Lord."- — Psalm xxvii : 14. 

I had yet to learn many lessons, however ; 
among other things, that what I had now com- 
menced is termed, and is, in very truth, the 
"fight of faith." I think I have met every foe 
that Pilgrim encountered on the first part of 
his journey from the city of Destruction, from 
Worldly Wiseman down to Simple and Pre- 
sumption ; each has had his say. Thanks be 
to God, I am trusting still. 

Not many days had passed before old 
symptoms returned, and, according to human 
appearances, there was need of medicine. The 
tempter began an argument with my soul, 
somewhat difficult to resist, telling me that I 
could go no further without this, which had 
been my help so many years. In an agony of 
suspense and fear I came direct to God for 
light, for direction; and He spoke peace to 
my soul. I gave orders for my medicine to 
be thrown away; whether I could lift my 
head or not, I would trust ! 

Among other inestimable blessings, my Lord 
has granted me a mother strong in faith; 



VICTORY THROUGH CHRIST. 121 

when my own began to waver, hers but shone 
the clearer, and together we fought on. On 
the third of November, walking a short dis- 
tance from our door, I had plucked a green 
leaf and borne it triumphantly to mother, by 
whom it was received as truly an evidence 
that the waters were abating, as was the olive 
leaf by Noah. I gained so rapidly, that, in 
the course of a few weeks, taking a friend's 
arm and a cane, I walked across the street to 
sister's. 

O, it is all too glorious to describe, the 
wondrous way my Lord has led me on, seem- 
ing some-times " for a small moment " to have 
forsaken me, but with " everlasting* mercy" 
, bearing me in mind. Gradually (my first 
word from the dear Lord, when I came to 
Him for healing, had been " wait") my faith 
and strength increased, until I could walk 
some little distance on the frozen earth each 
day, and make short calls at near neigh- 
bors. We had lived in our house for seven- 
teen years, and never, until since my cure, 
had I seen the upper rooms. Each trip up- 
stairs seemed as new, and grand, and strange, 
as most people's trips to Europe ! 



122 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

Meanwhile, matters had been so arranged 
that the coming spring, my only sister was 
expecting to move one mile away, and w r as 
very desirous of taking mother and myself 
with her to her new home ; but above every- 
thing, this side of death, stood my dread of 
riding. For eighteen years every attempt to 
ride had occasioned spasms, followed by such 
long prostration as was terrible to recall, and 
just here Satan stood over me exultant for 
many days. 

I did not always wisely remember that 
God's Word does not promise aid in advance 
of trial, but " as thy day so shall thy strength 
be." When the full time for my first experi- 
ence in the carriage came, the recollection, 
of the agony I had endured in times past, for 
a moment overpowered me ; my strength left 
me, my heart grew tremulous, and I called 
mightily unto God for help, for some word of 
cheer. Opening the good Book, expectantly, 
I was directed to these words : " He giveth 
power to the faint, and to them that have no 
might He increaseth strength." — Isaiah xl : 29. 
What could I ask more? 



VICTORY THROUGH CHRIST. 123 

I went to the carriage, praising God. Vic- 
tory did not crown my first effort, nor the 
next, but knowing that my Lord had promised 
— victory must be mine. All in good time it 
came; no larger than the cloud for which 
Elijah waited? was its first appearance, but by 
degrees I found that I could bear the motion 
of the carriage, and still better as time went 
on. I could be drawn slowly across the yard, 
but the thought of that one-mile drive termi- 
nating in change of home and surroundings, 
which I was so soon expected to undertake, 
Satan was permitted to hold before my mind's 
eyes for many days and nights, harassing me 
with doubts and fears, terrible to endure. 
On the twentieth of May, in an easy carriage 
phaeton, drawn by a gentle horse, I rode a 
quarter of a mile without spasms or any great 
distress. Victory was mine; friends stood 
upon the sidewalk, speaking words of encour- 
agement and praise as we passed along, and 
the thankfulness that went up from my heart 
that afternoon, no one but the dear Master 
knows anything about. 

Now I began coming to the dear Lord for 



124 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

unwavering faith concerning that long-dreaded 
removal to my new home, and on the morning 
of the second of June, little dreaming that 
that was the day appointed by the dear Mas- 
ter, for the same, my cry unto Him was 
answered by these words of promise, " Behold 
I am with thee, and will keep thee in all 
places whither thou goest * * * for I will not 
leave thee until I have done that which I have 
spoken to thee of." — Gen. xxviii : 15. 

There had been no time appointed for my 
transit to other quarters, but that June morn- 
ing it was as if my Lord had told me that 
the time was near at hand. To my great 
amazement, nervous anxiety was removed. I 
was wonderfully at rest, and began making 
preparations for a hasty exit; whether that 
day, or three months from that day, none but 
the dear Lord knew. 

During the early part of the afternoon I 
was enabled to call at a certain neighbor's, 
whom I had desired to visit before leaving 
our old home, and make a farewell call at 
another place not far away. Returning home, 
somewhat exhausted, I sought my bed for 



VICTORY THROUGH CHRIST. 125 

rest, and rest was granted. And now, at the 
right moment, my brother-in-law, at his store 
some little distance away, whom I had riot 
seen for some time, and to whom no one had 
spoken of calling for me to ride that day, 
was impressed to come to us with horse and 
phaeton. The time was now fully come. 
I was gloriously strengthened; rode to my 
new home without injury, or any great fatigue. 
Was not my Lord fulfiling His word of 
promise, gloriously ? Is it any wonder if my 
soul is so filled with praise that the one hun- 
dred and third Psalm will keep surging up 
from its very depths? I have given you a 
somewhat lengthy account, but the story can 
never be half told. I am in a delightful 
place to praise God all the day long, am 
growing stronger and better as the days go 
by, have long since lain on my left side ; in 
short, am being made every whit whole, thanks 
be to God, Who "giveth us the victory 
through our Lord Jesus Christ." 

Alice M. Ball. 



126 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

CHAPTER X. 

PRAYER AND FASTING. 

If the "fight of faith" looks difficult for us, 
we must not give up the blessings for which 
we have pleaded, and shelter ourselves be* 
hind the thought that it is not God's will for 
us to have them, when really our unbelief 
prevents us from obtaining them. The cow- 
ardice which makes us flee before the enemy, 
is not the submission of faith ; and we must 
not mistake the one for the other. There is 
one instance in which we read of the disciples 
failing to restore the sick, and that was when 
they could not cast the evil spirit out of the 
poor lunatic. 

When our Saviour Himself had performed 
the miracle, " Then came the disciples to 
Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we 
cast him out? And Jesus said, Because of 
your unbelief." 

If the disciples had reasoned, as some 
Christians of this age undoubtedly would, they 



PRAYER AND FASTING. 127 

would have said to the poor father, after their 
ineffectual attempt to cast the devil out of 
his child, " You had better go home and bear 
your affliction patiently. It is not the will of 
God that your son should be cured." But 
Jesus tells the disciples, in plain language, 
the reason of their failure, " Because of your 
unbelief." 

' Since He adds immediately after, "Howbeit 
this kind goeth not out but by prayer and 
fasting," it would seem to imply that this 
humiliation and denying of the body, would 
develop their spirituality, and take away from 
their own hearts the blind spirit of unbelief. 
It certainly teaches us that some difficulties 
which cannot be overcome by prayer alone, 
can be conquered by prayer and fasting. By 
subduing our fleshly appetites I believe that 
we become prepared for a higher spirituality; 
and with the renewing of the Holy Spirit, 
our requickened faith is powerful enough to 
grasp the blessings awaiting us. 

Do Christians attach enough importance to 
this subject of fasting? Our fleshly desires 
are clamorous, and not easily put aside. Most 



128 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

of us satisfy our consciences, even in seasons 
of fasting which the Church proclaims, by 
denying ourselves some luxury, which, in the 
solemn earnest life of a Christian, ought not 
to be considered by us allowable at any time. 
Christ said, " But the days will come when 
the Bridegroom shall be taken away from 
them, and then shall they fast in those, days." 
We read many times in the book of Acts, that 
the disciples did fast after the Heavenly 
Bridegroom had been taken away, and since 
He has not yet returned, is it not meet for us 
also to deny ourselves, at times, the bread 
for which we hunger again, that we may be 
satisfied with the Bread of Life ? And con- 
sidering the new spiritual life which may be 
ours through this means, Christ's question, 
"Is not the life more than meat?" comes to 
us with a new interpretation. 

Our holy Saviour, Himself, set us the ex- 
ample of fasting, when for " forty ^iays and 
forty nights " He hungered for our sakes, and 
He has plainly told us that a reward from 
the Father shall be given us, when we thus 
humble ourselves before Him. Speaking re- 



PRAYER AND FASTING. 129 

provingly of the Pharisees who disfigured 
their faces that they might appear unto men 
to fast, He continues, "But thou when thou 
fastest, anoint thine head and wash thy face, 
that thou shall not appear unto men to fast, 
but unto thy Father which seeth in secret, 
and thy Father which seeth in secret shall 
reward thee openly y 

Some of us may be faithless enough to be- 
lieve that it would be impossible to deny 
ourselves one meal, even, without great weak- 
ness of body, and subsequent prostration, but 
my experience in this has shown me that the 
higher sustenance given at such a time, is 
ample nourishment for the body as well as the 
soul. 

One sweet, Christian sister, of my acquaint- 
ance, who was praying with fasting for a cer- 
tain result which she desired for the glory of 
God, was marvelously sustained. Far from 
strong, naturally, she went without food long 
enough to have weakened a much stronger 
person, but she was nourished by the Lord. 
She had never before fasted for so long a time, 
but "never so comfortably," she told me, and 



130 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

afterwards, to the Lord's praise, she felt as 
well and strong as usual. 

We may remember with comfort how our 
tender Shepherd said, " I have compassion on 
the multitude, * * * and I will not send 
them away fasting, lest they faint in the 
way." — St. Matt, xv : 32. And can we think 
that He will not also " have compassion " on 
us when we " continue with " Him in weak- 
ness of body, pleading our needs, or the needs 
of our friends ? He will not send us away 
fasting. He will feed our souls with Himself, 
the Heavenly Manna. Think how the poor 
woman of Canaan was rewarded when she 
had faith even to claim the crumbs which the 
"children" had let fall. 

And here I cannot help speaking of that 
wondrous means of grace and strength, the 
Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, of which I 
fear too many of us fail to avail ourselves. 
Shall our souls starve while so rich a banquet 
is awaiting them ? 

O, dear ones, we are all invited as children 
to eat at the table of our Lord and Master, 
but do we have any appreciation of the won- 



PRAYER AND FASTING. 131 

drous feast set before us, even the " Bread of 
Life " ? Even if we do not refuse to partake 
of this sacred feast, are we making the most 
of our precious privileges, or are we dropping 
larger portions than " crumbs " from our heed- 
less and irreverent grasp ? Do we "gather up 
the fragments that remain, that nothing be 
lost"? — St. John vi : 12. I believe that if we 
will accept all that He offers us in that holy 
and mystical body, of which we spiritually 
partake, we may find renewed physical life as 
well as spiritual. Even if the lesser benefits 
are only " fragments " compared with the 
greater, we must not overlook or despise them. 

M Shepherd of souls, refresh and bless 
Thy chosen pilgrim flock, 
With manna in the wilderness, 
With water from the rock. 

"Hungry and thirsty, faint arid weak, 
As Thou when here below, 
Our souls the joys celestial seek 
Which from Thy sorrows flow. 

" We would not live by bread alone, 
But by that word of grace, 
In strength of which we travel on 
To our abiding-place. 



132 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

" Be known to ns in breaking bread, 
But do not then depart ; 
Saviour abide with us, and spread 
Thy table in our heart." 

But to continue the subject of prayer and 
fasting. Why were those thousands of people 
with Jesus on the occasion of His feeding 
them with bread in the wilderness ? We read, 
" And great multitudes came unto Him, hav- 
ing with them those that were lame, blind, 
dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast 
them at Jesus' feet, and He healed them." 
The people who were well and strong were 
bearing their sick friends to Christ, and, for 
their sakes, they had followed Him, and were 
without bread in the wilderness. And ought 
we not thus, with prayer and fasting, to bring 
the unconverted, the sick and the feeble, and 
lay them at Jesus' feet ? 

The third chapter of Acts affords us many 
lessons in regard to our duty toward our suf- 
fering neighbors. The poor lame man lay 
daily at the " Gate Beautiful," and asked alms 
of those who entered the temple, just as there 
are many nowadays, crippled spiritually and 



PRAYER AND FASTING. 133 

physically, watching us with eager eyes as we 
enter the sacred precincts, only in the shadow 
of which they may lie ; and is it not our faith- 
lessness that prevents us from bidding them, 
in the name of Christ, "rise up and walk/' 
that they too may enter the " Church Militant " 
in triumph ? 

We read that this lame man, at Peter's bid- 
ding, " leaping up stood, and walked, and 
entered with them into the te7nple, walking and 
leaping and praising God." What a glorious 
entrance was that; rejoicing in strength of 
body and soul, he was ready to serve God 
with both. But we must look back to notice 
that Peter did more than to bid him arise and 
walk; "he took him by the right hand, and 
lifted him up." 

So we must feel it our duty to assist those 
who are weak in faith, and those who have 
never had power to stand, and by prayer and 
encouragement we must hold them up, until 
they receive strength to "walk and leap." 
We read further about this converted and 
healed man, "And all the people saw him 
walking and praising God * * * and 



134 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

they were filled with wonder and amazement 
at that which had happened unto him." It 
is probable that the people were as much 
amazed at the man's praising God, as at his 
walking, and just in this glorious way, my 
dear, Christian friends, do we want to fill the 
world and the Church "with wonder and 
amazement " at the conversion of sinners, and 
the healing of sufferers, and bring into the 
Church those who have long lain outside in 
poverty of soul, or weakness of body. 

We will glance at the other important les- 
sons in this account of healing. It is related 
that " all the people ran together unto them in 
the porch that is called Solomon's, greatly 
wondering. And when Peter saw it he an- 
swered unto the people, Ye men of Israel why 
marvel ye at this ? or why look ye so earnestly 
on us, as though by our own power or holi- 
ness we had made this man to walk? " We 
find human nature now, as Peter found it 
then. So many look wonderingly at the 
instruments of God, believing them possessed 
of some mysterious power, or else believing 
them capable, by their own holiness, of ob- 



PRAYER AND FASTING, I35 

taining blessings which only the righteousness 
of Christ can procure for any of us. 

Peter proceeds to explain clearly the princi- 
ple of faith-healing : " The God of Abraham 
and of Isaac and of Jacob hath glorified His 
Son Jesus, * * * * and His name through 
faith in His name hath made this man strong 
whom ye see and know : yea, the faith which 
is by Him hath given him this perfect sound- 
ness in the presence of you all." 

O, my dear friends, we are not told that 
Christ was glorified by the man's forty-years' 
affliction, but by the " perfect soundness " 
given him by faith in our Saviour's name. 
" Therefore, glorify God in your body and in 
your spirit, which are God's." 

The efficacy of prayer and fasting for our- 
selves and for our suffering friends, was 
brought very forcibly to my mind by a letter 
which I received from an acquaintance, awhile 
ago, and which caused me to search the 
Scriptures, to get more light on our duty in 
this respect. The letter was from a minister, 
who had been cured of consumption after his 
wife had prayed with fasting, when many 



136 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

prayers without this bodily humiliation had 
failed to secure the desired healing, I have 
obtained permission of my friend to publish his 
interesting letter, thinking it may strengthen 
the faith of some of the dear sufferers who 
read this book. 

Alexander* N. Y., April i6th r 1880. 
Dear Sister in Christ : 

I have had great interest in your case from 
the time you were taken sick, and when I 
knew of your being healed I could praise 
God with you. I have had an experience 
somewhat like yours, or as wonderful. 

After I moved from Linden to Boston, I 
was taken sick ; having taken a severe cold, 
being very much overworked, but so situated 
that I could not stop work, and attend to 
myself, and soon took another cold, and an- 
other, until I was compelled to give up and 
go home, as many thought, to die of quick 
consumption. I called two skillful physicians, 
but they both told my friends I must die. I 
was confined to my house, and my neighbors 
expected to see crape on the door at any time. 



PRAYER AND FASTING. 137 

I did not think I was going to die, but be- 
lieved the Lord was going to raise me up in 
answer to the " prayer of faith ; " but as I was 
so weak in body, I thought it must be some- 
one's faith beside my own. After looking to 
the Lord for several days, and getting worse 
all the time, I wrote a line to Dr. Cullis, and 
sent my daughter to the "Consumptives' 
Home " with it, with the request for Dr. Cul- 
lis to come and pray for me. 

I told my daughter if he was not there to 
bring the letter back to me, and as he was not 
there she brought it back. My wife then 
said, " You have prayed for others, and they 
have been healed ; why can't you pray for 
yourself? " I was so weak in body, it did not 
seem as though I could have the faith. I 
waited a whole week, getting worse and worse, 
and had fearful night-sweats, and, to all human 
appearance, I was in the last stages of con- 
sumption. Finally my wife was fasting all day, 
praying the Lord to give me healing-faith, 
though I knew nothing of it. That very night 
I called my wife and children to my couch, 
and asked if they had any faith, and they all 
replied, "yes." 



138 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

I then took my Bible, turned with trembling 
hands, and read several promises on prayer 
and faith, and also that " the prayer of faith 
shall save the sick and the Lord shall raise 
him up," and we prayed and united our faith, 
claiming the promise, "if two of you shall 
agree on earth, as touching anything that they 
shall ask, it shall be done." 

As we were praying, I felt a sensation from 
my head down my spine, and to my feet, like 
the shock from a battery, and I knew I was 
healed. In ten days' time I was at my work 
again in the office of u The Christian," and 
preached Sundays, and, from that day till this, 
I have had no. trouble with my lungs. O, 
what a spiritual blessing I received also; it 
seemed as though I never felt Jesus so near 
before, not even at my conversion. I was 
healed Oct. 26th, 1876. I ha.ve known of 
very many cases of faith-healing. My wife 
has been healed, and is alive now in answer 
to prayer, though my friends thought she 
must die. O, what a mighty Saviour we have ! 
Let us praise and exalt him. 

Yours in Christ, 

(Rev.) A. P. Moore. 



PRAYER AND FASTING. 139 

Mr. Moore speaks of his wife's healing, and 
I have requested her account of it for my 
readers. Mrs. Moore is known to me person- 
ally, and the example of her beautiful Chris- 
tian life is helpful to all who know her. The 
following letter was received from her a short 
time ago : 

Alexander, N. Y. 
My Dear Sister in Christ : 

I have many times been raised up in answer 
to prayer. Many times when medicine has 
failed to help, have I and the children been 
restored when we looked to God alone, and 
let go wholly of the help of man. O, I have 
found it blessed to take the Lord for our 
Physician. Two years ago the doctor said 
mine was a very doubtful case ; I might live 
but a very short time. My disease was a 
most dangerous one, and could not be success- 
fully reached by remedies, being internal can- 
cer. I doctored four months with a physician 
who was very skillful with such diseases, and 
was then no better, as I could realize, but 
seemed much weaker. 



140 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

I grew worse and worse ; tried remedies that 
had helped others, but they did me no good. 
My pain grew much more severe. I realized 
that I was at death's door. My husband then 
requested prayer for me through a Christian 
paper, the "Crisis/' begging those who had 
faith to pray for me, saying that he felt like a 
drowning man, crying for help, and saying 
" who will help ? — who ? " Prayer was offered 
for me, not only by our people, but also by a 
little band of faithful Pilgrims in E. Bethany, 
called Free Methodists. 

God heard and answered. I was filled with 
the Holy Spirit. Every part of my body un- 
derwent a change, a renovation. My strength 
came, and I commenced to walk ; had hardly 
stepped at all for several months. O, how 
thankful I did feel; how I did praise the 
Lord "with a loud voice." I gave Him glory, 
and, thanks be to His dear name ! I have 
walked ever since. I can now work very 
hard nearly all day. The Lord has healed 
me, and I shall yet praise Him for a complete 
cure. 

I have another case of recent date. A young 



PRAYER AND FASTING. 141 

lady, who was living with one of our neigh- 
bors, was troubled with her lungs exceedingly. 
They were in a serious condition, and she was 
quite unfitted for work. Providentially, my 
husband and I staid there one night, shortly 
after I was healed. I felt impressed to pray 
for her recovery, and was gre-atly blessed. 
Was filled with the Spirit in a great measure, 
as when I was healed myself. She was healed 
that very evening. All through the night she 
felt the healing Power. It was something like 
a prickling or itching sensation. She has had 
no trouble with her lungs since, and has 
worked exceedingly hard a great share of the 
time. She gave God all the glory, and was 
greatly blessed spiritually. I have received a 
greater blessing spiritually, when I have been 
healed, than even at my conversion. 

O, how good the Lord is, to thus condescend 
to hear our cries for help, and thus to relieve 
us. May we never grieve Him more by unbe- 
lief. God help us to accept all His promises, 
and be truly blessed. Should you desire more 
of our experience of the healing power of 
God, I can give you many instances where we 



142 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

have been healed immediately. When we gave 
up all medicine, and trusted God wholly, He 
never disappointed us. 

Your sister in faith and hope, 

Mrs. A. P. Moore. 

"He that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall 
compass him about." — Psalm xxxii : 10. 

" It is better to trust in the Lord than to 
put confidence in man. It is better to trust 
in the Lord than to put confidence in princes." 
— Psalm cxviii : 8, 9. 

" The Lord is my strength and my shield ; 
my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped : 
therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth ; and with 
my song will I praise Him." — Psalm xxviii: 7. 



SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 143 

CHAPTER XL 

SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 

There are two short verses in the eighth 
chapter of St. Matthew, which we are not apt 
to consider, of particular importance, but 
which, in reality, contain a very sweet and 
comforting lesson. "And when Jesus was 
come into Peter's house, He saw his wife's 
mother laid and sick of a fever. And He 
touched her hand, and the fever left her, and 
she arose and ministered unto them." 

When Christ thus bids us arise, we shall 
find a blessed work in ministering to all who 
need our ministrations, and however humble 
may be our work seemingly, it will be sweet- 
ened by the precious knowledge that we are 
doing it for Him. Yes, as much for Him if 
we offer only a "cup of cold water" in His 
name, as when this restored woman ministered 
unto the Lord of Hosts, Himself. 

He " rebuked the fever " and raised her 
from her bed of sickness that she might min- 



144 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

ister unto her Lord and those of her house- 
hold. He would not have needed her services 
had He not chosen to accept them, for it 
would have been as easy for Him to perform 
some other miracle as that one, but He knows 
the joy which a fully restored and consecrated 
soul finds in loving service, and He gave to 
her, as He is willing to give to us, the privil- 
ege of being useful to Him. 

It is very noticeable that all who experience 
this Divine healing are filled with the desire 
to be useful in the Master's vineyard. Timid 
souls who have been either afraid or ashamed 
to speak for Christ, are ready, after His heal- 
ing touch, to proclaim to all the beauty of 
their Saviour. Verily, He giveth sight to the 
blind, and speech to the dumb. 

One dear sister of my acquaintance, who 
recovered from a long and painful illness, in 
answer to the "prayer of faith," has since 
found her greatest joy in winning souls for the 
Master. Her efforts in this direction, and 
especially her labors among the victims of 
intemperance and vice, have been rejoiced 
over by many who have found " the Way of 



SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 145 

Salvation " through her prayerful ministry. 
Her own experience of her Saviour's restoring 
grace, and of His healing touch, is well calcu- 
lated to give renewed courage and faith to 
others, and I publish entire the account which 
she has, at my request, kindly written for this 
work. 

Buffalo, June 30th, 1880. 
I have often felt, since my recovery from 
a long and alarming illness, in answer to the 
" prayer of faith, " that I should make a pub- 
lic statement of the facts of the case, both 
that God's name might be glorified by a re- 
cital of His wonderful dealing with me, and 
that some suffering ones who feel that there 
is nothing before them but a life of pain, may, 
through the blessing of the Holy Spirit, be 
led, as I have been, to look unto Him, " Who 
healeth all our diseases." I trust, too, that 
there may be professing Christians, who have 
heretofore followed the Master but " afar off " 
and with weak and faltering faith, who may 
be quickened into a new life by its perusal. 
God grant that it may be so, for His dear 
name's sake! 



I46 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

There are many in this city who will recall 
the long weary years of my illness. I believe 
it was partly caused by the worldly life of 
dissipation, into which I plunged at the age 
of eighteen, and which I bent every energy 
to maintain for several years, in spite of grow- 
ing weakness and steady decline of nervous 
force, which warned me that the taper was 
burning low. 

O, how bitterly do I regret those wasted 
years ! It was one continual round of parties, 
operas and theatres throughout the winter 
season, only to be continued at some fashion- 
able watering place, when summer came. 
Self was my only thought, and self-gratifica- 
tion my only ambition. Truly, when I reflect 
upon that period of my life and compare it 
with the present, I can say, with Paul, " The 
things I once loved, now I hate, and the things 
I hated, now I love." 

Such a life is worse than useless ; it is sui- 
cidal, and I cannot too strongly warn my young 
readers against it. The path appears to be a 
rosy one, but oh ! the thorns lie underneath. 
At last I was forced to take my bed, and from 



SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 147 

that time, for a period of ten years, I was an 
invalid, suffering more in mind and body than 
any language of mine could describe. 

But although, through the skill of an Indi- 
ana physician, I was, at the close of a year, 
enabled to walk about, I had learned so little 
by my sufferings that I, at once, by a great 
effort of will, returned to my former life of 
gaiety and folly, and, after a few months, the 
Lord in mercy laid His correcting hand upon 
me, and once more I was confined to my bed. 

The nervous system seemed to be com- 
pletely prostrated ; there was a constant pres- 
sure,- at times intense, in the back of my head, 
with great spinal irritation, which twice re- 
sulted in a serious attack of congestion of the 
brain, threatening my life. There was ner- 
vous dyspepsia in its worst form, attended by 
difficulties of the bowels and kidneys, which 
greatly increased my sufferings. There were 
other painful diseases to which I fell a victim 
at the beginning of my illness, and which 
medical aid never reached. 

When I look back and consider the deplor- 
able condition I was in, and how much I am 



I48 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

able to endure to-day, I can only exclaim, 
"This is the Lords doings, and it is marvel- 
ous in my eyes." 

It is not too much to say that I suffered a 
living death with my head. Very little of the 
time was I able to read, or hear reading, or 
see any of my friends. One of my sisters 
came from a distant city several times to see 
me, but I was too ill to bear the excitement 
of seeing her. 

The slightest noise caused my nerves to 
vibrate with the keenest agony; there could 
be no sweeping done within my hearing (which 
was marvelously acute) for many weeks — all 
sounds being magnified to my sensitive brain. 
Several friends and relatives sickened and 
died, and I did not learn of it until years had 
passed — no one daring to tell me, lest the 
shock should prove more than I could bear. 

Not the least of my distress was the thought 
that I must die, and that no one would be the 
better for my having lived ; that my life had 
been utterly selfish and sinful; that I had no 
treasure laid up in Heaven, and that I was 
wholly unprepared to enter there. 



SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 149 

At last, after having been under the care of 
seven different physicians, and being advised 
by the one then attending me, to once more 
seek a change of air and treatment, I was car- 
ried away upon a mattress with little, if any, 
hope in the minds of my distracted parents, 
that I could live many weeks. 

As for myself, I clung to life simply because 
I was afraid to die. After having received 
some benefit from magnetic treatment, and hav- 
ing been absent from home nearly three years, 
I was able to ride out, and walk about my room, 
but the relief was only temporary. It was 
then that, after having had in all nine physi- 
cians, the Lord led me to the dear, Christian 
woman, in the city of Rochester, who pointed 
me to Jesus, the Great Physician — glory be to 
His name ! — as the remedy I needed for my 
sin-laden soul, and my suffering body. Oh, 
that I could find words to express what a 
revelation that was to me ! " Oh, for ten 
thousand tongues to speak my great Redeem- 
er's praise ! " His wondrous love, His almighty 
power ! Dear reader, if you have never 
tasted that power, nor the faithfulness of His 



150 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

promises toward us who believe, may the 
Holy Spirit incline your heart to do so now. 
Like a sudden flood of sunlight in the gloom- 
iest day, His heavenly light shone in upon my 
darkened soul, and, flinging myself in utter 
self-abasement at his feet, I cried, " Lord, if 
Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean ! " 

At that time I was, for the first time in my 
life, " hungering and thirsting after righteous- 
ness/' and had felt that hungering from the 
first interview held with this saintly woman, 
whose very presence filled me with a deep 
awe and a sense of my great impurity and 
sinfulness. Many times during the morning 
Bible reading, at her house, I have trembled 
so violently from the powerful influence of the 
Holy Ghost which fell upon us as she spoke, 
that I could scarcely retain my seat. 

Coming thus in true penitence, humility 
and faith to Jesus, I found Him all that my 
soul could ever need, and then rejoicing in 
the forgiveness of my sins, I was led to look 
to Him for healing of the body also. I vowed 
to Him that if he would, in mercy, restore me 
to health, my life should be wholly consecrated 



SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 151 

to His service. He heard my cry and deliv- 
ered me from my distresses. To Him " be 
glory and majesty, dominion and power, both 
now and ever ! Amen." 

I had been carried up and down-stairs for 
nearly five years ; in ten days I walked down 
and out into the street and back to my room 
with a little assistance. In a few weeks, not 
more than four, I could walk two miles with- 
out injury, and a short time after this was 
sent- home, a wonder and an astonishment to 
all who knew me. It seemed to be God's 
plan with me to greatly try my faith by per- 
mitting some of my difficulties to remain, in 
spite of many prayers and efforts to overcome, 
and also by sending me many afflictions and 
sorrows, which well-nigh caused my frail bark 
to sink beneath the waves. But with the 
Captain of our salvation on board I felt that 
I should weather all the storms. During those 
times of fiery trial, when flesh and heart 
almost failed me, I was often comforted by 
sweet words of Scripture stealing in upon my 
mind so gently; Heavenly promises, re-assur- 
ing and urging me on. From my heart I 



152 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

thank my Heavenly Father for the griefs and 
trials He has sent me, for each has brought 
its deep and valued lessons, and each has 
brought me nearer and nearer to Him. " Be- 
fore I was afflicted I went astray, but now 
have I kept Thy law." 

Within the past two years I have been still 
further strengthened by an interview with a 
minister of the Gospel, in the city of Brook- 
lyn, who had been miraculously healed, almost 
instantly, while engaged in prayer with Dr. 
Cullis, of Boston, whose great work of faith 
is widely known. He bade me believe that 
the work of healing was wholly done in me, 
though I could not see it so, reminding me 
that " we walk by faith and not by sight/' 

While pondering over this, as I walked the 
street some days after, very much mystified as 
to his meaning, and questioning his authority 
for saying so, the following verse from God's 
Word rushed through my mind with a mean- 
ing it had never before : " What things soever 
ye desire, when ye pray believe that ye receive 
them and ye shall have them " / That is, believe 
though it be in total darkness, and light will 



SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 153 

surely come. Joshua had to take God's word 
for it that Jericho was his, and, in obedience 
to His command, gave the shout of victory 
before there was the least sign of it, and then 
the walls fell ! 

I gladly grasped the above-named promise, 
feeling assured that the Lord had sent it for 
my encouragement, and was greatly strength- 
ened thereby, and upon returning home was 
very soon led out into the Master's vineyard, 
in a most unexpected way, to labor in a city 
mission work, a work which I hope never to 
be compelled to abandon. It brought me 
into many scenes of the most harrowing dis- 
cription, and surely was a work better cal- 
culated to test my nervous strength, than 
anything I could have possibly found. I 
could not. have endured it without God's sus- 
taining grace; neither could I ever have 
chosen such a work for myself. It was clearly 
God's leading, and so I followed on. 

Two months ago, feeling much worn by the 
many perplexities and anxieties, inseparable 
from such a work, I felt the necessity of call- 
ing a little meeting of believing ones, for 



154 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

united prayer that I might be strengthened, 
and fully equipped to do the work which 
pressed upon me on all sides, especially all 
the reading and" writing I found necessary 
day by day, and which had seemed for a time 
more than my brain could bear. 

We also asked that, above all, I might be 
"endued with power from on high." Six 
friends united with me in this city at the hour 
appointed, and Mr. and Mrs. Mix, in Wol- 
cottville, Conn., and I was "anointed with oil 
in the. name of the Lord/' according to the 
command in James v: 14, by an "elder of 
the church " who was present. All in the 
room felt the power of the Spirit, and it 
was an hour long to be remembered. Those 
prayers were heard and answered ! Two days 
after, I was called very suddenly to scenes of 
the most trying description, and of the most 
unexpected nature, where strength of mind 
and body were fully tested. My friends agree 
with me that I was led of the Spirit to call 
the prayer-meeting just when I did, and that 
I was indeed prepared by the Lord for all the 
difficult work which immediately followed. 



SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 155 

I am well aware how this statement will be 
received by the incredulous world, and by 
many earnest followers of the Master to whom 
the subject is a new one ; but to the latter I 
would say, take your Bible and prayerfully 
read the many precious promises given to His 
believing children. Bear in mind that they 
are all conditional. It is always " according to 
thy faith be it unto thee." Just think for one 
moment what Jesus said to the distracted 
father who brought to Him his son who was 
vexed with a devil : " If thou canst believe, all 
things are possible to him that believeth " / Is 
not the magnitude of that promise almost 
overwhelming? Is it not boundless? And 
does it not mean any man, woman or child 
who lived then, who lives now, or who may 
live in the future, who truly believes! Does 
He not invite and persuade us to test His 
faithfulness and His almighty power? And 
we need not fear to bring every little need of 
soul and body to Him, for He says, " My God 
shall supply all your need," and " Whatsoever 
ye shall ask the Father in My name, He will 
give it you." Our bodily needs are often very 



156 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

imperative, often entirely beyond the reach of 
human aid. Then why not carry them to 
Jesus, who has " all power in heaven and on 
earth " ? It is so sweet, so comforting to feel 
that we have a loving Father Who notes even 
the tiny sparrow's fall, and Who assures us that 
we "are of more value than many sparrows." 

In giving us His only Son to die the shame- 
ful death of the cross, He has proved "the 
great love wherewith He hath loved us," and 
that we are indeed precious in His sight. He 
loves to give good gifts to His children more 
than the tenderest earthly parent can, and 
therefore I think we have every encouragement 
to come and bring all our needs, small and 
great, before Him, claiming the promise that 
"no good thing will He withhold from them 
that walk uprightly." 

An unbelieving relative, to whom I related 
a wonderful instance of immediate relief, in 
answer to my prayer, from a very painful 
malady with which I was attacked at one 
time, since my recovery, said, after critically 
listening to the recital, "Well, a few facts -are 
worth a great many surmises ! " And so I 



SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 157 

feel that the large number of facts which have 
been ascertained within the past fifteen years 
with regard to the healing of all manner of 
disease, chronic and acute, in answer to the 
prayer of faith, are sufficient to convince any 
candid inquirer who will investigate the sub- 
ject with a sincere desire to be guided into all 
truth. It is a lack of knowledge, as well as a 
sad lack of faith, which makes the Christian 
Church so slow to receive the testimony of 
those who have been healed by coming to 
Jesus as did the suffering ones of old. Our 
Saviour promises to manifest Himself unto 
His faithful followers as He would not to the 
world. Therefore how dare any man say that 
these things, related in many instances by 
persons justly eminent for their devoted, holy 
lives, are not true, simply because he in his 
darkness and unbelief has not been similarly 
blest? 

It is our privilege to trust Jesus as a perfect 
Saviour, "able to save, to the uttermost, all 
who come unto God by Him," and, dear 
reader, just as willing as He is able. He is 
able to save us daily and hourly from every 



158 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

known sin, because "Whosoever abideth in 
Him sinneth not." — 1 John iii : 6. He is 
able to cleanse our hearts from all unclean- 
ness. " The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, 
cleanseth us from all sin ; " and more than 
that, He is able to keep our hearts as pure and 
fit temples for the indwelling of the Holy 
Ghost. The Bible says, " Without holiness no 
man shall see God;" and again, "Without faith 
it is impossible to please - God." A life of 
holiness is attained only by faith, and faith is 
the gift of God ; one of those " best gifts" 
which St. Paul begs us to "covet earnestly." 
Every faculty of the mind, as well as every 
muscle of the body, strengthens by use. 
Therefore let us exercise what faith we have, 
and pray for more. The men and women 
whom I have met who have been led to look 
to Jesus for restoration to health, are, without 
exception, leading devout and holy lives, and 
thus realize the fulfilment of the promises 
given to all who abide in Christ, and know, as 
.does the writer, the blessedness of being 
"dead unto sin and alive unto righteousness." 
Let us surrender ourselves wholly to the 



SERVICE FOR THE MASTER. 159 

Lord. His Word says, " Bring ye all the tithes 
into the store-house that I may have meat in 
my house, saith the Lord ; and prove me now 
herewith, if I will not open you the windows 
of heaven and pour you out a blessing that 
there shall not be room enough to receive 
it." Let us accept this challenge, lay our- 
selves upon the Altar and receive this won- 
dous blessing, and we shall find Him sufficient 
for every need of soul and body. For my- 
self, I feel to say that God, helping me, 
" Christ shall be magnified in my body, 
whether it be by life or by death." 

Anna W. Prosser. 



l6o THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 



CHAPTER XII. 

THE TRUE CHURCH MILITANT. 

Outpourings of praise, such as those re- 
corded in the testimonies given in this book, 
are going up every moment, from increasing 
multitudes of God's children, who are finding 
in their loving, tender Shepherd, " an ever- 
present help " in time of all trouble. In their 
wonderful experience of the richness of His 
mercy, of the faithfulness of His care, over 
all their smallest needs, there arise great 
yearnings that other Christians may under- 
stand His boundless love, and praise Him by 
proving His every promise. O, the blessed- 
ness of " casting all our care upon Him," Who 
careth for us, can never be told. If every one 
would obey the command : " Be careful for 
nothing; but in everything, by prayer and 
supplication with thanksgiving, let your re- 
quests be made known unto God," there 
would be no troubled hearts or care-worn 
brows, and only " the peace which passeth all 



THE TRUE CHURCH MILITANT. l6l 

understanding," would shine from faces alight 
with the joy of the Lord. In the one hun- 
dred and seventh Psalm, David enumerates 
God's full and blessed answers to the prayers 
of travelers, of captives, of sick persons, of 
seamen and of husbandmen, and exclaims 
again and again in wondering adoration, " Oh, 
that men would praise the Lord for His good- 
ness and for His wonderful works to the chil- 
dren of men ! " 

And, after summing up God's manifold prov- 
idences in answer to the prayers of those who 
cry to Him in their trouble, and showing, by 
many illustrations, how "He bringeth them 
out of their distresses," the Psalmist concludes 
with these comforting words : " Whoso is wise 
and will observe these things, even they shall 
understand the loving kindness of the Lord." 

O, I beg those who have never " observed 
these things" before, to make haste to do so, 
that they may understand how excellent is the 
loving kindness of Jehovah, and how His 
"faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds." 

Filled then with the praises of our Lord, 
and lost in His love, we shall all be one in 



162 THE PRAYER OF FAITH. 

Him ; we shall " be planted in the house of the 
Lord " and " shall flourish in the courts of 
our God." One of the most beautiful things 
in this life of faith, and utter dependence on 
our Father, is that all who come into it learn 
to recognize their fellow-Christians in the 
" unity of the faith." — Eph. iv : 13. A gentle- 
man said to me not long ago : " I believe that 
the Church of the present time is in ruins. 
Christians nowadays are Methodists, Presby- 
terians, Baptists, Episcopalians, etc., and they 
are not united as the Church of Christ." 

But, in the midst of that seeming division, 
there stands one glorious, triumphant body, 
composed of the faithful of all denominations, 
who know u one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 
one God and Father of all" (Eph. iv : 5, 6), 
and who " have been all made to drink into 
one Spirit." — 1 Cor. xii : 13. 

These "fitly joined together" in love "are 
the body of Christ, and members in particu- 
lar; " these are the true " Church Militant; " 
the " armies of the living God " who are 
" strong in the Lord and in the power of His 
might." Among themselves they "keep the 
unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace ; " but 



THE TRUE CHURCH MILITANT. 163 

with the enemy of souls they are fighting " the 
good fight of faith." They have " put on the 
whole armour of God," that they "may be 
able to stand against the wiles of the devil." 

" Stand, therefore, having your loins girt 
about with truth, and having on the breast- 
plate of righteouness ; and your feet shod 
with the preparation of the gospel of peace ; 
above all, taking the shield of faith, where- 
with ye shall be able to quench all the fiery 
darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of 
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which 
is the word of God." — Eph. vi : 14-17. 

" Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you 
like men, be strong."— 1 Cor. xvi : 13. "And 
the multitudes of them that believed were of 
one heart and of one soul." — Acts iv : $2. 

My dear friends, let us breathe a prayer 
together before we part : " And now, Lord 
* * * grant unto thy servants, that with all 
boldness they may speak Thy word, by stretch- 
ing forth Thine hand to heal j and that signs 
and wonders may be done by the Name of Thy 
holy child Jesus," — Acts iv : 29, 30. 

THE END. 



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